A Familiar, A Harpy, and Paladins Oh My!
by Twilight Unicorn
Summary: Angel finds himself with a familiar and Harpy problems. What is he to do?
1. Dream's Warning

**Title:** A Familiar, A Harpy, and Paladins. Oh My!

**Summary:** Angel finds himself with a familiar, and Harpy problems. What is he to do?

**Disclaimer: **Not mine, never will be. You can't even blame me for the story, a friend of mine gave me the idea. Oh, and the song used in Part 16 belongs to Celine Dion.

**Timeline/Author's Note:** It's not the traditional one after Season 2 of Buffy. Some of the aspects of Season 3 _are_ there, while others aren't. I'll also be using other aspects and gained knowledge from further seasons on both Buffy and Angel -- and will be putting my own twist on 'em. You'll understand once you start reading this.

**Notations:** _Inner-thought_, _"mind-speech"_

* * *

**Part 1: Dream's Warning**

**_Pain.  
Agony.  
Screams.  
Flames.  
A coal-black horse with flaming mane and tail.  
Escape.  
A portal.  
A soul crying out his name in sorrow, pulling him back to earth.  
Darkness._**

Angel gasped awake, shaken to his very being. In fear, he looked around wildly, sweat dripping off his bare skin in streams. Seeing that he was in his bedroom in the mansion, Angel groaned and put his face into his hands, shuddering.

A moment later, Angel threw back the blankets, and got out of bed. He quickly headed for the bathroom. In minutes, he was taking an _extremely_ cold shower, washing off the heated and hated memory of Hell.

Fifteen minutes after Angel had awoken, showered, and had a quick meal, an urgent knock sounded at the entrance door to the mansion. Careful to stay out of the sunlight, Angel opened the door. He knew who it was before he saw her.

_Buffy._

The Slayer gazed at Angel anxiously as he closed the door. He sighed wearily, as Buffy asked in a rush, "Are you alright? I had a feeling that you needed me."

Angel slowly raised his eyes from the floor, and looked into Buffy's eyes. What Buffy saw made her close the distance between her and Angel, and gently place a hand against the vampire's cheek.

"You dreamed again," she softly whispered as Angel nuzzled her hand, his eyes closed.

Silently, Buffy took Angel over to the fireplace, sat down, and had the souled vampire lay his head onto her lap. She gently stroked his hair as he at last slowly relaxed in the presence of the only safety and comfort he knew

* * *

The stars shone brightly with no moon to dim them. Within the shadows, a darker shadow moved. In the light of a passing car, a cat's eyes glowed.

Darkness seeking out darkness, the cat searched for the one it had come to find. In a graveyard, the cat found Angel waiting for Buffy.

The cat watched Angel for a moment, assessing him, and thought in disbelief, _**This** is the guy that I'm supposed to get to **help** me! I could take him!_

At that moment, Angel looked up from the grave he had been studying, and looked towards the cat.

_Hell!_ the cat thought as he moved deeper into the shadows. _Great job, Darkmoon, he must of sensed me... How'd he do that!_

Light footsteps sounded in the cemetery behind Darkmoon. A female voice called out "Angel" as said vampire smiled faintly in relief. Buffy came into the cat's view.

_Oh, great. This complicates matters. Women just get in the way_, thought Darkmoon.

He watched as Buffy gave Angel a quick kiss and hug, before she started pulling him out of the cemetery. "Come on, Angel," Buffy said. "There's a party at the Bronze, and I don't want to be without a date."

Angel stopped instantly, and pulled his hand out of Buffy's, as he said in panic, "_No._ I'm not going there. The others will be there!"

Buffy frowned as she turned to look at Angel. Clearing the annoyance from her face, she said soothingly, "Angel. You _have_ to face them eventually. They _know_ you're back."

"Not yet," Angel whispered, his eyes pleading. "Please Buffy, I'm not ready yet."

Buffy blew out a breath in frustration, as she threw up her hands and exclaimed, "When _will_ you be ready, Angel! At this rate, I'll be ready to _croak_ when you say you'll face them!"

Angel looked down, away from Buffy's angry gaze. From the shadows, Darkmoon growled menacingly, tail lashing in rage.

_How dare she! She can't boss him around. She has no **right**!"_

Angel's brow drew down as he turned in Darkmoon's direction, and asked, "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what," Buffy asked, automatically going into Slayer mode.

"Something."

**_Damn_**, thought Darkmoon. _He couldn't have possibly heard me. Gotta make sure he doesn't learn about me yet._

With a loud meow -- as if he had been startled -- Darkmoon burst out of the bush he had been hiding under, and ran between -- and past -- the Slayer and souled vampire.

Buffy and Angel looked where Darkmoon had disappeared, then at each other. After a tense moment, they burst out laughing. Buffy fell to the ground holding her sides, while Angel bent over in half with his hands resting on his knees.

A few minutes later, they calmed down. Angel helped Buffy to her feet, saying in a light tone of voice, "Now that I've made a fool of myself, I suppose I might as well go to the Bronze with you."

As Buffy and Angel left the cemetery, Darkmoon -- from where he now hid -- heard Buffy comment, "Talk about a black cat! But was it just me or did that cat have one gold and one silver colored eye? And what about that collar? I could of sworn that there was some sort of medallion on it."

* * *

As the sun neared rising, Angel walked towards the mansion, while an unseen shadow followed him.

_He sure is a quiet one_, thought Darkmoon. _Not what I expected from a druid and warrior of his rank. I need to start getting him prepared for what's to come._

* * *

In sleep, Angel dreamt. Not of the darkness of his past, nor the horror of Hell, but of a cemetery in Sunnydale. All around him, a mist could be seen obscuring the headstones from his view, except for the one in front of him. He read the headstone, and felt fear.

**Liam Kells, 1726-1753, Druid  
Angelus, 1753-1898, Vampire  
Angel, 1898- , Dark Warrior for the Light**

As he gazed at the tombstone, a black cat that looked suspiciously familiar leapt onto it. Moonlight flashed on the medallion around the cat's neck, and Angel shivered. The medallion bore the mark on his back.

As the cat gazed at him with gold and silver eyes, a voice entered his mind. _"The Harpy draws near, Master. You **must** be prepared."_

The cat then leapt towards Angel, changing into a large panther with black wings. A fierce panther's roar echoed in his mind as Angel gasped awake, shaken to his very soul.


	2. Dream's Revealing

**Part 2: Dream's Revealing**

Buffy walked into the Bronze, looking for her friends. She saw Willow waving to her a moment later in a corner booth. Buffy waved back, and walked towards Willow.

"Hey, Will," Buffy said cheerfully upon reaching said person. "Where is everyone?"

With a strained smile, Willow said, "Hey Buffy. Xander couldn't make it 'cause Cordelia wanted some 'alone time' with him, and Oz is playing a gig at the college."

"Oh. Why aren't you with Oz then?" Buffy asked.

Willow gazed at the Slayer for a moment, then sighed as she said, "We need to talk about last night...when you brought Angel with you."

Buffy lowered her eyes from Willow's gaze, and slowly sat down, resting her arms on the table in front of her. In a quiet voice, she asked, "What about?"

Willow reached over and gently touched Buffy's left arm at the wrist, and whispered, "You should have at least warned us that you were going to bring him, especially after everything he did to us."

Buffy's head jerked up, rage in her eyes. She stood abruptly, leaned towards Willow on the table, and hissed, "I don't need you or anyone else telling me what to do concerning Angel!" Her voice rose slightly, as she said, "My life has been dictated to enough as it is!"

The Slayer pushed away from the table, and stalked away, leaving behind a very shaken Willow. Once Buffy was outside of the Bronze, Giles came out from where he had been hiding while Willow confronted Buffy.

In a quiet voice, he said to Willow grimly, "It is worse than I thought. All she is willing to see is her love for the vampire."

Willow gazed at the entrance to the Bronze with troubled eyes, and said softly, "No Giles, that is not what the problem is. We're pushing her too much. She needs space after everything that has happened...and the only one doing that is Angel."

"So naturally," Giles murmured in sudden understanding, "she will defend him."

* * *

**_Melody.  
Harmony.  
Beauty in tone.  
Seduction in musical form._**

Angel felt it more than he heard it, followed it from chamber to chamber of the mansion, drawing closer to the double doors as he sought the song's source. Into the night he went, led by the beckoning notes. There, in the glow of a park light, the singer, dancing with a partner.

Angel stopped, and started to chuckle at the unlikely couple.

She was radiant, lean, long-legged, and barefoot. Angular, gossamer fabric rising and falling around her like feathers on a breeze, wings of beauty, complementing her form.

He was an old wino, stumbling to match her steps, clumsily flapping after her in his efforts to soar like the glorious vision he danced with. The drunk lifted her as her song rose, and she soared into the air, flapping her wings...

_Wings!_

Feathered wings of lustrous black, blue-green highlights glinting in the light, she hovered above the man.

A raucous, hawk-like screech, and she dove.

The wino screamed in terror, then in agony as talons ripped, beak slashed, and flesh tore. People running out of their homes to help. Only to stop at the sight of the creature before them.

Angel ran towards the beast to stop it, only to stop himself.

The creature raised its head sharply, and looked straight into Angel's eyes. A connection was made. With a scream unlike anything Angel had ever heard, the bird-woman rose from her victim, and soared towards the souled vampire.

Angel fell to the ground as the creature flew over him, screaming. Whether his, hers, or both, he did not know. In the distance, sirens howled in harmony.

* * *

Outside of the Bronze, Buffy stood shivering in rage. _How dare they! They do not understand. Angel is **not** the demon...he is the soul._

Buffy sighed, her anger leaving, as she thought, _Although, I can see their point as well. Last night was pretty hard on Angel, more than anyone else. I better go see how he's doing._

As Buffy began to walk towards the mansion on Crawford street, she heard many sirens in the direction she was going. Her curiosity peaked, she went to investigate.

Upon arrival, Buffy saw that the police and an ambulance that was pulling away were in front of the mansion. She also saw that two policemen were asking Angel questions. From the look on Angel's face, he was ready to bolt towards the mansion in panic. Her mouth thinned in anger. Buffy started to make her way towards Angel, only to be stopped by another policeman.

"I'm sorry miss, but no one's allowed past the yellow line," the officer said.

Buffy looked up at the one keeping her from Angel, and said quietly, "I was just coming to see my fiancé, and what do I see? Him being interrogated, and scared out of his wits. I would like to make sure he's alright, and find out what's going on!"

The policeman's brow drew down, as he asked, "Aren't you too young to be engaged?"

"I'll be eighteen in about two weeks, Officer," Buffy explained. She then asked, "Can I _please_ see my fiancé?"

The officer hesitated, then looked into Buffy's pleading green-blue eyes. "Alright," he said quietly, "let me ok it with my superior, miss...?"

"Buffy, Buffy Summers," the Slayer supplied. She did not miss the slight widening of the officer's eyes before he nodded.

"If you will stay here, Miss Summers, I'll go see if you can talk to your fiancé."

Buffy nodded, and watched as the officer went to talk to another policeman. She felt eyes on her, and turned her head to see who. Angel gazed at her with desperation, pleading with her to get him out of the situation he was in. At that moment, she _knew_ she had to get to him _now_.

_"Damn them,"_ Buffy hissed before breaking into a run. At the shouts for her to stop, Buffy leapt over the yellow warning line, went to Angel, and held him in a fierce hug. With a grip born of desperation, Angel clung to Buffy as he visibly shook.

"Get me out of here," he whispered hoarsely.

Buffy nodded, then turned within the vampire's arms to look at the police officers who now surrounded her and Angel. In a quiet and commanding voice, she said, "I need to get him out of here. He is at a very unstable emotional state right now. I am trying to help him, but this situation may have undone some of the work I've done. Now _please_, let us by."

An elderly police officer said, "I am sorry miss, but we cannot do that. He is the key witness to a gruesome murder."

A shudder wracked through Angel at those words, as he buried his face into Buffy's hair. His muscles grew taut, as his grip around the Slayer became even tighter, making it hard for her to breathe.

In a gasping voice, Buffy said, "Angel! Can't. _Breathe!_"

Immediately, Angel's grip loosened. With a shuddering breath, Buffy untangled herself from the souled vampire, turned around, and looked into his eyes. All she saw was terror.

In a voice that broke no discussion, the Slayer said, "I do not care _what_ rules we break. I am taking my fiancé home with me. He is in no condition -- _whatsoever_ -- to answer your questions."

With those words, Buffy gripped Angel's hand tightly, and roughly pushed past the policemen. Nobody stopped her.

* * *

Silently, Buffy slipped into her bedroom through the window, then whispered while holding out her hand, "I invite you in, Angel."

Hesitantly, Angel took the offered hand, and let the Slayer pull him inside. She gestured to her bed. Angel looked at the bed, then at Buffy, his gaze unsure. With a faint sigh, Buffy pulled the vampire over to her bed, and gently pushed him down onto it. With a gentleness born of long practice, she removed Angel's coat, and had him lay down on the bed.

She gently stroked his hair until he fell asleep. Once the distraught vampire was asleep, Buffy reached for her phone, and hit the memory button for Giles' number.


	3. A Familiar and A Harpy

**Part 3: A Familiar and A Harpy**

That morning, in the library at Sunnydale High School, an emergency meeting was taking place.

"I am _not_ making this up, Giles!" Buffy exclaimed in anger.

"I am sorry, Buffy, but I cannot possibly imagine what could make a vampire so distraught," Giles said, while furiously wiping his glasses.

"And it doesn't help that when I brought it up this morning -- before leaving -- that he nearly went hysterical! No, correction: he _was_ hysterical." Buffy drew in a deep breath to calm herself, then said slowly, "Giles, his reaction was _far_ worse than whenever I accidentally say 'Hell' around him."

Slowly, Giles put his glasses back on, and studied his Slayer. "Buffy," he said softly, "you know I will have to use all venues open to me, to find out what could possibly frighten him. That means that I will have to contact the Council of Watchers, and tell them about Angel. I have not told them about him before this."

For a long moment, there was silence, then Buffy nodded. "Alright," she said. "Contact them. Tell them what you can." Buffy paused in thought, then said, her voice hardening, "But Giles, also tell them this: If they try -- in _any_ way or form -- to harm or kill Angel, they will answer to _me_."

* * *

Angel tossed restlessly in the Slayer's bed, as Darkmoon silently entered the room through the window. He leapt onto the bed, and gazed solemnly at the vampire.

_There is no time to prepare him. **She** is here, and has seen him_, Darkmoon thought grimly.

Slowly, the black cat moved towards Angel's restless form, but did not touch him. When he stood at the head of the bed, he closed his eyes, and pressed his forehead to Angel's.

_Let our minds be joined_, Darkmoon thought.

Images came to him, as he felt himself enter Angel's mind.

**_Death.  
Destruction.  
Remorse.  
Light in the form of a woman...a _Slayer_.  
Love.  
Pure happiness.  
Soul's loss.  
The demon seeking revenge.  
Soul's return.  
Hell.  
Freedom._**

With a screech, Darkmoon forced himself back into his own body, and fell off the bed, shaking.

_He's been to Hell! Great merciful heavens...he was **in** Hell!_

With a shudder, Darkmoon once again leapt onto the bed. Purring in a chant-like manner, he pressed himself against Angel.

_"Sacred Moon, hear my plea!"_ Darkmoon thought out-loud. _"Ease the horror of this one's dreams. Let him know peace."_

The black cat once again shuddered, as a female voice thundered in his mind, **_"There is only_ one _who may give him peace. One who cannot do so, due to the curse laid upon him. The curse that binds his soul."_**

_"How, then, am I to aid him?"_

_**"You are bound to him now. Awaken him. Explain what is happening. Have him seek the aid of those he knows. Though they seem his enemies...they are not."**_

Head bowed in reverence, Darkmoon thought, _"Sacred Moon -- Mother -- I thank you. It shall be done as you say."_

When he was sure the presence was no longer around him, he added silently, _Around sunset, that is._

* * *

Giles slowly placed the phone down after five hours of intense conversation with various people of the Watchers Council. He took off his glasses and wearily rubbed his face.

From behind him, the Slayer asked quietly, "What's the verdict, Giles?"

With a weary sigh, Giles turned around to face the Slayer and Slayerettes, and said, "They'll help. If only to see one who has withstood the torments of Hell, and 'survived to tell the tale', as they put it."

Buffy's lips thinned in displeasure, before what Giles said completely registered. Her eyes widened, as she said in shock, "They're coming _here_!"

Giles nodded, and watched as the Slayer nervously paced. He became concerned, and asked, "Buffy, what is it?"

Seemingly talking to herself, Buffy said, "I haven't even gotten him to tell _me_ about what he experienced in Hell. How could the Watchers possibly pry it out of him?"

"I do not know," Giles sighed. "They don't comprehend a lot of what I told them, but they are _willing_ to try and understand."

Buffy nodded as she looked towards the sunroof. Quietly, she said, "Sun'll be down in about an hour. Angel promised to be here shortly after sunset to tell us what he saw, or at least a drawing anyway.

* * *

As Angel dreamt, he sensed the nearing of the sun setting. In dream, he found himself once again in one of Sunnydale's graveyards. Again, he stood before the headstone that bore his life's story.

_Why am I here?_, he thought as he looked around.

"To see me, Master," said a voice behind him.

Angel whirled around, and saw Darkmoon. "Who or what are you," he asked.

"Your familiar," came the simple reply.

"Familiar?" Angel said in confusion. He then asked, "What are you talking about?"

Darkmoon's eyes narrowed, before he said, "Do you not remember, Liam Kells? You who were destined to be a druid of high rank, before your death? I was to be your familiar, though you were not supposed to know that."

Angel's eyes widened in shock, before he shouted "NO!", and woke up.

* * *

Angel's eyes snapped open, to find the black cat from his dream sitting calmly on his chest. With a strangled cry, he threw the cat across the room, and sat up, breathing heavily. The cat crashed heavily against a wall inside Buffy's closet. As Darkmoon landed on the floor of the closet, objects on the shelf inside the closet started to fall.

Angel distinctly heard within his mind _**"Damn you,"**_ before everything fell on top of Darkmoon. Shaking with shock, Angel scrambled out of Buffy's bed, knelt in front of the closet, and began to take things off of the black cat. What he saw made him shudder.

Bloodied, flattened, and no pulse let Angel know that the cat was not alive. As Angel picked up and held the cat close to himself, a strange thing began to happen.

The wounds that the cat had began to mend. Within moments, the wounds were gone, as the flattened form began to take on its more natural shape. When all was once as it was, Darkmoon gasped awake, heart beating.

Once again, Angel heard words on his mind that were not his own. Words that were clearly agitated.

_"I would **appreciate it** if you don't ever do that to me again!"_

With a start, Angel dropped the black cat, and scrambled away from Darkmoon, until he bumped into the bed. With a frustrated growl, Darkmoon leapt, and landed on Angel's lap. Once there, he snapped, _"Be still!"_

Angel froze.

Calmly, Darkmoon plopped down onto Angel's lap, and gazed up at the vampire. He said, _"Now, as to who I am: My name is Darkmoon, and I -- as I said earlier -- am your familiar. Now, because of your untimely death, the druids looked into the future, and saw that you would need me. So, they placed a spell on me that cannot be revoked, and made me immortal, unable to die...as long as **you** remain alive, so to speak. You being a vampire and all. Does that explain everything to you?"_

"I think so," Angel said quietly, his brow drawn down in concentration. He then looked more closely at the cat. "But if this is true, why were you not with me before this?"

Darkmoon shook his coat, and said with a snort, _"They wouldn't let me go to you. I had to play 'decoy', until the time was right for you to destroy **her**."_

A chill went down his spine, before Angel asked, "Who?"

_"The Harpy. The creature you saw last night."_


	4. Light and Dark Paladins

**Part 4: Light and Dark Paladins**

Half an hour after sunset, Angel arrived at the high school library.

The first thing said by anyone within the library was said by Xander, saying, "Hey Deadboy, where did the cat come from?"

As Angel went to stand by the checkout counter, said cat leapt onto the counter and sat down, gazing at everyone with an unusual intelligence in his eyes. It was Buffy who spoke next.

"Angel, is that the same cat we saw in that graveyard yesterday night?"

Angel nodded, then said, "Remember what you said about a medallion on his collar?" At Buffy's nod of agreement, he continued, saying, "Why don't you come over here, and tell me if you recognize it."

As Buffy did as Angel asked, Darkmoon thought snidely to the souled vampire, _"And **this** is the almighty Slayer?"_

Angel's eyes narrowed, as he focused his attention on the cat. _"You'll regret that, **Familiar**."_

The vampire's attention returned to Buffy, as she gasped and gazed at Angel with wide eyes. She said in shock, "That's your tattoo!"

Angel nodded, and said, "Strange as it may seem, this cat is my familiar."

"You're Wiccan, Angel?" Willow asked in confusion.

Angel shook his head, and looked at Willow as he replied, "No. Druid." Angel winced. "Well, _was_ anyway."

_"You **are** a druid. Otherwise I wouldn't be here,"_ Darkmoon corrected.

"You sure about that," Angel asked uncertainly, gazing down at his familiar.

_"Hell, yes!"_

Angel froze, all pretenses of breathing stopped. A fine shudder swept down his body, as his eyes glazed.

"Angel?" Buffy asked. Getting no response, she slowly reached up a hand, and placed it against the souled vampire's heart. "Angel, I'm right here." She said, slowly, soothingly. "Come one. Break free of the memories."

Out of the corner of her eye, Buffy watched as Darkmoon slowly stood, and made his way over to Angel. Once beside Angel, the black cat pressed himself against the vampire, purring hypnotically. Five minutes later -- under Buffy and Darkmoon's combined efforts -- Angel began to "breathe" again. Shortly after that, he shuddered, and wrapped his arms around Buffy, trembling.

In a ragged voice, Angel said to Darkmoon, "Don't you ever say that word around me, Cat. _Ever!_"

All watched as Darkmoon shrank back from Angel. Willow made a faint sound, went over to the familiar, and began stroking him. She asked, carefully ignoring the shaken state of the vampire, "Angel, how can this cat be your familiar? I've never seen you do any magic."

"Because you haven't seen him doing it, doesn't mean he hasn't, Willow," Buffy said grimly, pulling out of Angel's embrace. "How else did he get to...you-know-where."

By this time, Angel had calmed down enough to pay attention to what was going on around him. He said, explaining, "When I was..._human_, I was a druid. A very _powerful_ druid. Not long after when I was Turned by Darla, I would've been given a higher rank...and been given Darkmoon there. But since I was Turned, that was not possible."

"Angel," Giles said, for the first time speaking up.

Angel looked over at the Watcher, and asked quietly, "Yes, Giles?"

"Can you explain how Darkmoon -- as you called him -- is here now?"

Silence, then Angel said, "A spell was placed on him not long after they realized that I was Turned. This spell makes it impossible for him to die...unless I die."

"So he'll die only when you die," Oz said from where he sat. At Angel's nod, he commented, "Huh."

"What a minute!" Xander said suddenly, as he realized something. When everyone was looking at him, he said, "Angel, you said that when you were changed into a vamp, that your familiar couldn't be your familiar. Why is he with you now, _as_ your familiar then?"

_"I **like** him!"_ Darkmoon said to Angel.

_"I **don't**!"_ Angel replied in kind, before answering Xander's question. "Apparently, what I saw last night is part of why Darkmoon is here."

"What _did_ you see, Angel?" Buffy asked, then said, "I've never seen you so scared in my life,"

In the expectant silence that fell, Angel shivered, then said, "A Harpy."

"And how does your familiar play into this?" asked Giles into the stunned silence.

Angel looked down at Darkmoon, and said, "One of the reasons the druids were giving me a higher rank -- besides the fact that I could handle it -- was that a harpy had been brought to our dimension from another. Only those of high rank could go through the tests needed to be accepted as one of the two...'champions' needed to defeat the harpy. I was considered the only one capable of passing the tests for the champion I would be."

"But you never got the chance 'cause you were turned into a vamp, right?" Buffy said and asked.

Quietly, Angel answered, "Yeah."

"What type of champions, Angel," Giles asked, heading towards the stacks in the upper-level of the library.

A long silence fell, in which Giles was about to reach the first bookcase, when Angel said, "Paladin."

Giles froze, then said, his voice catching, "Paladin!" He turned around and faced Angel. "Are you sure? What type of paladin?"

"Light and Dark. I was to be the Dark, and another was to be the Light."

"Why both kinds, not just one?"

"Because this particular harpy is neither Light nor Dark, but neutral," Angel explained to Giles. "Both are needed to destroy it."

"Light and Dark have _never_ co-existed!" Giles exclaimed.

With irony in his eyes, Angel said dryly, "Oh, they can co-exist alright. Me and Buffy are a fine example."

"Unless you loss your soul," Xander contributed blithely.

"Thank you _so much_ for that unnecessary reminder!" Buffy snapped.

Giles said loudly and sternly, but not exactly shouting, _"Children!"_

Immediately, all arguing -- even those about to argue -- stopped. Everyone turned to look at Giles. Once he knew he had everyone's attention, he said in a calmer tone to the souled vampire, "Angel, why were you considered for the position as a Dark Paladin?"

"I don't know, they were going to tell me when I went for the tests."

In the silence that followed, Darkmoon leapt onto Angel's shoulders, startling the vampire. Purring loudly, he said to Angel, _"You were the only one with the strength to withstand the power of the darkness you would wield against the harpy."_

Angel glanced at the cat out of the corner of his eye, and asked, while raising a hand to support the cat where he perched, "What do you mean?"

_"Your soul. As a child, they saw the strength of your soul, and knew you were destined for great things. How else do you explain your soul's resistance to the demon's demands to be freed? It isn't just the curse keeping it bound."_

Angel's brow furrowed in concentration, as he thought about what his familiar had said. Only Buffy placing her hand on his arm brought him out of his musings.

"Angel," she said, then asked, "what are you thinking."

Silently, Angel took Darkmoon off of his shoulders, and held the cat in front of him. He said casually -- _too_ casually, "Tell me, Darkmoon. Did anyone pass the tests to be chosen for the Light Paladin?"

Squirming, Darkmoon said, _"Yeah. A woman by the name of Maeve Summers I think."_

"Would the call of that chosen Light Paladin continue down that specific lineage until the Dark Paladin was found and chosen?"

Darkmoon froze as he caught the gist of what Angel was implying. He turned his head, and looked directly at Buffy. _"Yes,"_ he answered. _"It would."_

With that, Angel carefully put Darkmoon on the ground, and said in a whisper, while he crouched above the cat, "Then use your sight, Familiar, and tell me if what I think is true."

Darkmoon moved towards Buffy, until he was only a foot away. Once there, he purred in a chant-like manner, and said, _"Sacred Moon, I call upon you to aid me. Let me see if this woman is descended from the chosen Light Paladin."_

In Darkmoon's sight, a blinding glow suddenly surrounded the Slayer, as a female voice said within his mind and Angel's, **_"Well done, my sons. She is indeed descended of that line. She _is_ the chosen Paladin. For she possesses the soul of she who was chosen first."_**

With those words, the light disappeared from Darkmoon's vision.


	5. The Watchers

**Part 5: The Watchers**

Three days passed, before the Watchers came. During that time, Giles and Willow constantly tested the bond that Angel and Darkmoon now shared as Master and Familiar. They learned many things. One of which was that Angel and his familiar did not seem to get along very well. They also learned that both had a very twisted sense of humor.

"What do you mean you can cast spells!" Angel asked in astonishment.

_"What **else** am I going to do for two hundred forty-five years? Take up **swimming**! I'm a familiar, for the sake of the stars!"_ Darkmoon retorted.

Angel leaned back in the chair he was sitting in, and smiled faintly, a malicious gleam in his eyes, as he said, "I'd pay to see that."

At the other side of the library, Willow whispered to Giles, "You know, it's _real_ creepy when you can only hear one side of their conversations."

"If only I could find that spell to let a familiar talk to whomever they wish," Giles muttered as he slowly flipped through an old book.

Silence fell in the room for a brief moment, then Angel said with raised eyebrows, "I didn't know you could read! **pause** Hey! **another pause** _Alright!_ I was only joking! **an even longer pause** Giles, Darkmoon says to try the 'Book of Druidic Chants', if you have it."

"I'm not sure I do. What does it look like," Giles asked, as he put up the book he had been looking in.

With what sounded like a disgusted growl, Darkmoon went over to where Giles was standing. Angel said, with raised eyebrows, "I'm not even going to repeat that."

"I'm grateful, I'm sure," Giles said dryly as he followed the familiar deeper into the stacks.

* * *

Two hours later, Angel fell backwards in his chair as Darkmoon landed squarely on the vampire's chest to wake him up. On instinct alone, Angel shouted, and threw the cat off of himself.

_"Not again!"_ Darkmoon said just before crashing into a wall.

Moments later, the familiar came back to life, shook himself off, and hissed at Angel.

"Good Lord," whispered a man's voice at the entrance doors of the library.

All except for Angel turned to see eight men and women standing just inside the library. As Giles went to greet them, Angel stalked over to the black cat, and grabbed him roughly by the scrap of the neck, raising him to eye-level. He growled at Darkmoon, his eyes glowing yellow.

"Honey," Buffy said quietly, "calm down and behave."

Closing his eyes, Angel did as Buffy asked. Once calmer, he released Darkmoon, and went to sit back down where he had been before being awakened by the cat.

"You didn't have to wake me up like that!" Angel snapped at Darkmoon, still upset.

_"Well, how was I to know you would react like that!"_ the familiar snarled back as he leapt up onto Angel's lap.

While Angel glared at the cat, Buffy went up behind him, and began to rub his shoulders. After a moment, Angel -- almost against his will -- closed his eyes, and rolled his head forward. Another moment passed, before Angel began to -- what sounded like -- purr or growl in contentment.

_"Enough with the cat theatrics,"_ Xander suddenly exclaimed. "Buffy, can you wait until you get him _home_ to do that!"

"Yes," Giles said. "For once, I concur with Xander about this."

Muttering under her breath, Buffy stopped, as Angel made a faint sound of protest. The protest stopped when Buffy quickly kissed him on the lips, then whispered in his ear, "Later, Honey."

Angel nodded, then brought his focus onto the newest group of people to enter the library. He tilted his head to the side, and commented, "Introductions would be a good idea, Giles."

"Yes, of course," Giles said while adjusting his glasses. "You need not know their names, only that they represent the Council of Watchers, and will aid us with current matters."

"Names _would_ be nice," Buffy said while crossing her arms.

Giles looked down, sighed, then raised his head and glanced over at Buffy. He said quietly, "I'm sorry, Buffy, but they will not allow it."

"Then," Willow asked, "what are we to call them?"

"Sir, Ma'am, or Miss will do," said one of the Watchers.

Angel stiffened, as memories of a childhood best forgotten came to him. He tightened his hands around Darkmoon.

**_"Don't!"_** the familiar shouted in Angel's mind. Immediately, Angel's grip loosened. _"Don't you **dare**, Liam Kells. Dieing once a day is enough."_

"Sorry," Angel murmured to Darkmoon as he regained his composure. He then added, "And don't call me that. I'm no longer that person."

A female Watcher asked, "And who is this, Giles?"

Firmly but quietly, Giles said, "I think you should learn that last." He then pointed to Buffy -- and each in turn as he called them -- and said, "This is Buffy Summers, the Slayer." Buffy waved, then picked up Darkmoon from Angel's lap, and sat on said vampire's lap, placing the familiar on her own lap as Angel wrapped his arms around the Slayer. "Yes, of course... This is Xander." Xander looked up from the comic book he was looking at, and smiled. "This is Willow. Our resident Wiccan." Willow waved timidly from where she sat, holding Oz's hand. "And the one next to Willow is Oz. He is a werewolf." Oz nodded as the Watchers murmured amongst themselves. "There is also another in this group that is not here this night: Cordelia. It is very rarely that you will see her, as she tries to keep her distance from us as much as possible."

The female Watcher once again spoke, saying, "And the one you have not yet introduced. Who is he?"

Giles sighed, then said, "That is Angel, the souled vampire. It is he who went and came back from Hell."

_"Giles!"_ Buffy said sharply, as Angel drew in breath harshly, eyes widening in terror.

_"Damn that Watcher!"_ Darkmoon thought angrily as he leapt up onto Angel's shoulders. Once there, he pressed his head against the vampire's. Memories not his own overwhelmed him.

_**Pain.  
Terror.  
Unspeakable acts that left him numb from overwhelming pain.  
Mind losing its grip on reality.  
Demon and soul united in their cries of unbearable torment.**_

With an unearthly howl, Darkmoon broke free of the memories. Shuddering, the familiar called out, _"Mother! **Help me!**"_

Instantly, Darkmoon felt power flow through him. With a new determination, he focused once again on Angel's mind.

**_Pain and terror banished.  
Tormentors faced and defeated.  
Reality brought back into focus. Focused upon the one who loved him.  
Demon and soul brought to an understanding.  
Memories put to rest once and for all._**

As Darkmoon withdrew from Angel's mind, the souled vampire drew in a shuddering breath, and buried his face in Buffy's hair, shaking.

"What the H--" Xander stopped, and amended what he was about to say. "What in the _world_ just happened?"

Darkmoon -- knowing that Angel was safe with Buffy -- leapt from the vampire's shoulders and onto the table where Angel sat. Once on the table, he picked up a pencil with his mouth, trotted over to a pad of paper, and began to write a message.

Moments later, Darkmoon put the pencil down, and -- with his nose -- pushed the pad over to Willow. The Wiccan picked up the paper, and read, "I just helped the vampire put his memories of _that place_ to rest."

Willow tilted her head as she gazed at the familiar, then asked "How?", and pushed the pad back over to Darkmoon. A minute later, she had her answer.

"I made him face them," she read.

Xander snorted, and said, "_That's_ helpful!"

Darkmoon's eyes narrowed, as he thought, _I'm beginning to see why my master doesn't like him. Now how to repay him...? Oh! **I know.**_

Angel's silent command of _"Don't."_ kept Darkmoon from doing what he truly wanted to do. Tail lashing in agitation, he walked over to Xander, and purposefully landed on the boy's comic book instead.

_"Hey!"_


	6. Harpy's Challenge

**Part 6: Harpy's Challenge**

Angel moved restlessly from room to room in the mansion, the stirred-up memories of Hell making it hard for him to stay in one place for long. Buffy, Giles, Darkmoon, and the other Watchers sat in the main room, discussing events that the Watchers had not been aware of.

"Hey Darkmoon," Buffy said, "can you go get Angel in here?"

Darkmoon gazed up at Buffy with an expression in his eyes that clearly stated: _"Are you crazy!"_ At the Slayer's glare, Darkmoon shivered, and went to get Angel. Minutes later, there was a screech, as the familiar _flew_ back into the room, to land harshly against a wall.

As Angel walked into the room, Buffy commented, "You know love, you _should_ stop doing that to him."

Angel wiped blood off his lips as he said, "He interrupted dinner."

Buffy blinked, then slowly said, "Ah..." She then noticed the look of concentration on Angel's face, and the slight fear. "Angel, what is it?" A low growl made Buffy look down at Angel's feet. Darkmoon crouched before his master, fur bristling. "What's going on?"

Almost in a trance-like state, Angel moved -- his familiar following -- towards the entrance doors of the mansion, and opened them. It was only then that those within the mansion heard the haunting song.

As Angel left the mansion, Buffy stood up and followed, grabbing a sword by the door as she went. The others soon followed as well.

* * *

"By the heavens," whispered a Watcher in awe.

Haunting beauty floating on raven-black wings, more woman than bird, the harpy sang. Below her, Buffy, Angel, and Darkmoon stood. As the Watchers watched, the harpy landed, becoming completely human.

In a melodious voice, she said, "So, you are the paladins that will defeat me, hmm?" She then noticed Darkmoon. "We meet at last, Familiar. I know it is _you_ whom I've chased all these centuries." She then looked back at Buffy and Angel, saying, "You both have yet to take on the titles you are destined to. I will give you both three months to do all that is necessary to gain those titles. At the end of the three months, I will meet you here, and we shall battle."

With those words, the harpy's arms became wings, and she took flight.

* * *

"How are we going to fight something that _flies_, Giles!" Buffy asked hysterically.

Once again inside the mansion, Buffy paced while Angel sat on the couch, head in his hands, trembling. Darkmoon sat beside him, pressed against the vampire, purring loudly. The Watchers were scattered around the living room, frantically going through books, searching for _any_ kind of reference for what they had seen. The Scooby Gang was there as well.

Giles went from studying the souled vampire, to looking at the distraught Slayer. He said quietly, "I don't know, Buffy."

"In order to fight this particular harpy," Angel said from where he sat, his voice muffled, "you must be a paladin. It's the only way."

All activity in the room stopped, as all focused their attention on the vampire as he said, "Except I have no clue how you become one."

At those words, Darkmoon stood, and leapt onto the coffee table in front of Angel. Once there, he began to write on the notebook placed there for just that purpose. Fifteen minutes and three pages later, Darkmoon was done. He turned, and looked expectantly at Angel. With a sigh, the vampire picked up the notebook, and silently began reading.

* * *

"No! I am _not_ going back there," Angel exclaimed, panic-stricken.

_"How **else** are the tests to be preformed?"_ Darkmoon snapped in anger.

"Can't they come here, Darkmoon," Buffy asked, then said, "It would take three months just for Angel to get there anyway."

Darkmoon paused, then picked up a pencil, and slowly wrote "There is one possibility, but it's not one I like using, as it will hurt my master." on the notebook. Buffy read what was written to the others.

Once Buffy had finished reading, Angel slowly stood up, and went to stand by the fireplace. He said grimly, "Do it anyway."

Darkmoon nodded, and went to stand in front of Angel. Once there, Angel knelt down beside him, then took off his shirt, clearly following an order given by his familiar. His shirt off, several of the Watchers gasped as they saw the mark upon the vampire's back.

"The mark of Kells," one Watcher whispered.

"Buffy," Angel said quietly, "I need the silver chalice from my bedroom."

Once the chalice had been placed between Angel and Darkmoon, the vampire stretched out his hand to his familiar. With a swift swipe of his claw, Darkmoon sliced open the skin at Angel's wrist. Angel made not a sound, as he watched his blood slowly fill the bowl.

Once full, Darkmoon placed one paw into the chalice. A blue glow slowly began to surround the feline, as Angel cried out in sudden pain. All watched in stunned silence as Angel fell to the floor beside Darkmoon -- unconscious, the mark on his back glowing with a rainbow radiance -- as the familiar began to grow.

Within a moment, wings blacker than coal sprang forth from Darkmoon's back. In the ending of that moment, the familiar had grown as large as a lion, but was the shape of a panther with feathered wings. Upon the wings -- etched in silver -- was the mark on Angel's back.

Giles whispered faintly in shock, "He is a guardian...as well as a familiar. Only Merlin ever possessed such a creature."

Darkmoon removed his paw from the now empty chalice, stepped over his master, then roared, his wings outspread. The sound was deafening, as the mansion shook with the force of the roar.

All in the mansion heard, as Darkmoon called out in a rumbling voice, _"Sacred Moon, I call upon you as your son. **Hear me!**"_

All felt the sudden feeling of some great force within the mansion. A female's voice that came from everywhere and nowhere said, _**"I hear. What do you request, my son?"**_

"My master needs to go through the tests to become a paladin...as does the Slayer in this room. They are unable to do so in the time allotted to them by the harpy. My request is that those that are needed to perform the tests are informed that they need to come here, and perform those tests upon the souled vampire and the Slayer."

There was a long silence, before the voice spoke again, saying, "I shall inform those that are needed. They shall be here by the time my face turns dark."

With those words, the presence withdrew.


	7. Guardian's Duty

**Part 7: Guardian's Duty**

"So," Willow said somewhat excitedly, "the druids will be here in about two weeks?"

"Yeah," came the muffled reply, as Angel lay face-down -- flat-out on the couch -- as Buffy soothingly massaged his back.

"Angelus," a female Watcher said. "Wha--"

"Angel!" several voices chorused in correction from various directions.

Somewhat startled, the Watcher continued, saying, "What is your distinction among the druids, and how did you attain the mark of Kells upon your back?"

With a sigh, Angel said, "Buffy, stop." When the Slayer sat down on the floor in front of the couch, Angel pushed himself up, and sat behind her. Leaning forward, the souled vampire asked, "What do you know of the Kells bloodline?"

"That they were very powerful, but were not recognized for that power, except among the druids. The eldest sons were born with the mark of Kells on their back. They were also practically wiped-out in seventeen fifty-three."

Looking down at his hands, Angel asked, "How were they destroyed?"

"By some unknown vampire. To this day, we do not know who--" The Watcher stopped suddenly, as a realization came to her. "Good God! _You_ were that vampire!"

Angel nodded, and looked up, bitterness in his eyes, as he whispered rhetorically, "What better way to destroy a bloodline than to _be_ of that bloodline?"

A male Watcher asked in a hard voice, "What was your human name, _vampire_?"

"Liam Kells," Angel answered. He then said, "I was the eldest -- and only -- son in my family. My father was a merchant, while my mother was royalty."

"What level of royalty," asked Giles.

"She was a princess. In fact, if she hadn't married my father...she would've been an unacknowledged queen."

"Unacknowledged?" Another Watcher asked. "What royal line would that be?"

Angel slowly rose to his feet, and said casually as he walked out of the room, "Pendragon."

* * *

Near noon the next day, Buffy slipped into the mansion, and found herself face-to-face with the guardian form of Darkmoon.

"Hey, Darkmoon," Buffy said quietly. "How's Angel doing?"

_"Alright,"_ he said within the Slayer's mind. _"Asleep right now. I just wish that those blasted Watchers would leave him alone!"_

Buffy chuckled, and watched as the guardian became a familiar. She said, "Right with ya on that. Angel almost vamped on them out of sheer frustration last night, when they didn't take seriously his _'Leave me alone.'_ Even _Xander_ knows not to cross that line!" She sighed, before saying, "At least they were helpful in getting that spell to let you speak to all of us. If only they could find a way to bind Angel's soul _permanently_."

Buffy went and sat down on the couch, Darkmoon jumping up onto her lap. She petted him as she said regretfully, "If only the curse were permanent...and he could go out into the sunlight. Then everything would be perfect between us."

Silence fell, before Darkmoon said quietly, almost unsure of himself, _"Wouldn't him loosing his soul be considered harmful to him? And I **know** sunlight and holy objects **are**."_

"Yeah," Buffy said, equally slowly, "they would... What are you getting at?"

_"The ability to go from familiar to guardian and back has only happened once before, with the wizard Merlin's familiar. I have been granted the level of guardianship, because of how powerful my master is. One of the responsibilities of a guardian is to make sure no harm can come to the guardian's master as much as possible. Another thing is that now that I can take **on** the guardian form...I've been granted greater magical abilities...and knowledge of where magical artifacts are located. One in particular I know would be **very** helpful to my master, and is here in Sunnydale."_

Buffy's hand stilled, as she understood what was being hinted at. In a voice that broke no disagreement, she said, "Tell me."

Darkmoon moved from under Buffy's hand, and faced the Slayer. He said, in a serious tone, _"It's called the Ring of Amara, and it makes a vampire immune to all things that can kill or harm them. Even a stake in the heart, beheading, or sunlight would not damage them in the least."_ After a pause, he said, _"I am also in possession of a spell to make it so that only my master may wear the ring."_

* * *

"How are we to get the ring when it's in a sealed tomb..._underground_!" Buffy exclaimed to Darkmoon later that day, as Angel restlessly paced behind her.

_"I can get in there with my master,"_ Darkmoon explained. _"But I need to be near the place in order to do it. That is where you come in, Slayer."_

"What exactly is she needed _for_," Angel asked as he continued to pace around the room.

_"The spell I will use to get into the crypt will need the blood of a **very** powerful being on the side of Light. The most powerful ones are paladins and Slayers. She is technically both, even though she has yet to formally take on the rank of paladin."_

"Will I have to go through what Angel did," Buffy asked uncertainly.

_"No. The only pain you will feel would be when you cut yourself."_

Buffy nodded her understanding, and said, "Then all we need do is wait for sunset."

* * *

Mere seconds after sunset, Angel, Buffy, and Darkmoon slipped out of the mansion.

"I hope no one realizes that we're gone," Buffy whispered as they slipped through the graveyard near the mansion.

_"They wont even know we left and came back,"_ Darkmoon said. _"I placed an enchantment in the room we left from. They'll think we're all just taking a well-deserved nap."_

A few minutes later, they reached their destination. Crouched above the place where the tomb lay buried, Buffy drew a knife lightly across her hand. Only a few drops fell onto the ground, but that was all that was needed. In guardian form, Darkmoon touched Angel, and they disappeared.

Sitting down on the ground, Buffy pulled out a stake, and lightly tapped it against her knee as she gazed around herself.

* * *

Within a tomb filled with unimaginable riches and artifacts, Darkmoon and Angel appeared. Moving with unerring precision, the guardian familiar went towards his goal, the souled vampire following. Within a moment, Darkmoon carefully picked up an old green-gemmed ring, and placed it in Angel's waiting hands.

Slowly, Angel picked up the ring, and slipped it onto his left middle finger. He looked around, and saw a cross nearby. With an unnecessary breath, he reached out, and placed his hand upon the cross.

Nothing happened. Not even a wisp of steam, nor the sizzle of flesh burning.

With wondering eyes, Angel gazed at Darkmoon. "It works," the souled vampire whispered hoarsely.

_"It should,"_ Darkmoon said calmly. _"Come on. We need to go and make sure that that ring can only be worn by you."_

* * *

_"...Let this ring be bound. Let only one vampire ever wear it from this day forth. He who is named Angel, a souled vampire."_

Within a silver chalice, the ring of Amara glowed, the gem changing color, becoming blood-red with a clear center. Then slowly, the mark of Kells appeared in black upon the gem.

_"It is done,"_ Darkmoon said. _"Go ahead and put the ring on, Master."_

Angel slipped the ring onto his left middle finger, and looked at Buffy, smiling faintly. Buffy smiled back, and hugged the vampire, saying, "Now if only we could bind your soul a little more securely."

_"I **might** have a solution to that,"_ Darkmoon said. At the looks of shock from the vampire and Slayer, he explained, _"Remember when I said that it was a spell that made me unable to die, and **how** it keeps me from permanently dieing? Well, I might be able to get the druids to alter it, and make it so that I am 'technically' my master's soul's keeper. That way, as long as I live, your soul would be bound to you._

"And since you cannot die permanently unless I die," Angel said in wonderment, "my soul would be bound to me for as long as I exist!"

"No more happiness clause... No more curse, because it wouldn't be needed," Buffy mussed out-loud.

_"**But** we gotta wait until the druids get here,"_ Darkmoon said, being the voice of practicality.

Angel gazed at Buffy, taking her hand in his, as he said, "We've waited this long. We can wait a little longer."

Buffy nodded her agreement, then said, changing the subject, "Angel, about the ring? I don't think it'd be wise to let them know you have it yet. They wont know what it looks like -- especially now that the gem has changed -- so you wearing it wont be a problem."

_"Agreed,"_ Darkmoon said. _"They will merely think it an heirloom, with the mark of Kells upon it. Come, we must go out and be with the others. They are starting to become suspicious."_

As they left the bedroom, Angel could be heard saying, "First thing we do at lunch tomorrow, is have a picnic." You could almost _hear_ Buffy's grin following those words.


	8. The Druids

**Part 8: The Druids**

One and a half weeks later, Buffy and Angel were sparring in the library, when a group of five men and women -- talking with Irish accents -- came in. They fell silent at the sight of the vampire and Slayer.

A moment later, Buffy and Angel stopped, and looked over as Darkmoon stood in front of the latest arrivals. All heard, as he said, _"Took you guys long enough."_

"We are sorry, Familiar," a man in the group said, "but we were delayed by harsh weather."

"You are the druids?" Giles asked. At their nods of agreement, he then said, "Welcome to the Hellmouth."

* * *

"How proficient are both of you with swords?" a druid asked later that night at the mansion.

"Well enough," Buffy answered, as Angel's lips thinned with memory.

"Can you show us," a female druid asked.

"Yeah..." Buffy said, while looking at Angel, remembering the same thing he was.

After a silent communication with their eyes alone, Buffy and Angel got up from where they had been sitting by the fireplace, and went to an adjoining room. They came out moments later carrying swords.

Glancing around, Angel murmured, "We're going to have to clear the room."

Ten minutes later, Buffy and Angel faced each other, swords drawn. At a silent command from Darkmoon the two Warriors began.

Their first moves were tentative, unsure, but moments later -- their eyes wide and wild with memory -- they began a familiar dance. A dance they could not stop until it was completed.

It only took moments for the others to realize that something was wrong, when Darkmoon took on his guardian form, but did nothing more than growl in what seemed frustration.

"What's wrong," Willow asked, then gasped as Buffy fell to the floor of the garden outside, sword out of reach, Angel standing above her.

For a moment, neither Angel nor Buffy moved. During that same moment, Darkmoon said solemnly, _"They relive their darkest memory. Not even **I** can stop them now. They must complete what they have started."_

The moment Darkmoon concluded speaking, Angel raised his sword, and brought it down swiftly towards Buffy as she lay beneath him, eyes closed. In a moment of infinite stillness...the sword was caught between the Slayer's hands.

As her eyes snapped open, Buffy pushed the sword harshly towards Angel. While the vampire staggered back, the Slayer swiftly stood, grabbing her sword as she went. In movements too swift to follow, Buffy and Angel moved back into the main room, the vampire clearly loosing.

Mere seconds after they had entered the room, the vampire lost his sword, and fell to his knees, head bowed. As the Slayer slowly raised her sword for the final -- and fatal -- blow, Angel looked up, his eyes filled with his soul. Drawing in a deep breath, Buffy slowly lowered the sword, as Angel stood. With a clamor, the Slayer dropped the sword, as Angel reached out to take hold of her shaking form.

The moment Angel held the Slayer in his arms, Buffy began crying. Not the simple tears of pain, or the expression of sorrow...but gut-wrenching, body-convulsive cries of agony.

Vampire and Slayer fell to their knees, their strength to stand gone, as Buffy kept saying brokenly, "I'm sorry."

Moments passed, before Angel could speak. When at last he found his voice, he whispered hoarsely, "There was nothing you could have done, Beloved, but what you did."

* * *

"So _that's_ what happened to you guys while I was re-cursing you, Angel?" Willow asked.

Angel nodded, as he held Buffy close to him, unwilling to not be touching her at this moment. Buffy, as well, clung to Angel, an occasional shudder coursing through her body. Darkmoon lay between them, purring loud enough for all to hear.

"With the things you have told us these two warriors have gone through... They need not go through the tests," a male druid said. "They have proven themselves _far better_ than any of the tests could. All we need do, is have the higher powers recognize that they are paladins."

Giles asked quietly, "How? There have been no paladins in this realm for millennia's. Not since a thousand years before Christ's coming."

_"They will be recognized,"_ Darkmoon said quietly. _"My mother already recognizes them."_

"Your mother?" Willow said questioningly. "You've said that before when you have called upon the moon, but what does it mean?"

Darkmoon was silent, then leapt to the coffee table in front of him, and said solemnly, _"I was found under the new moon, when there should have been no such moon, newly born. The reason for the moon to have darkened when it shouldn't have? She had born me, and sent me to earth...to be bound to the Dark Paladin that would soon come to power."_

Darkmoon was silent for a moment, then quietly said, _"She ignored the whispers that the Dark Paladin would be turned to darkness before his powers were fully awakened...and that those powers would only come forth during his time in Hell...nearly two and a half centuries later."_

Buffy and Angel froze at those words, shock evident on their faces. It was Angel who reacted first, rage consuming him.

_"You know!"_ Angel hissed. "And you didn't _warn them_!"

**_"I did not know!"_** Darkmoon snapped. _"I didn't even **know** that I was a familiar until the night that you were Turned! On that night I woke up to the sound of Mother weeping, and learned who **I** was."_

Darkmoon shook himself, then said more calmly, _"I am sorry, Master, for what you have endured. If I had known, I would have stopped it."_

Silence fell, as all within gazed stunned at Angel and Darkmoon. Angel then said, in a voice that could barely be heard, his anger gone, "No, it was destined to happen...and I have become stronger for it." The vampire then looked up, and said with a glint in his eyes, "Seven hundred and fifty-five years in Hell will do that to you."

The only sound that followed those words was the shattering of a ceramic cup.


	9. Soul's Binding

**Part 9: Soul's Binding**

In a room in the mansion, familiar and druids were meeting.

Darkmoon's tail lashed in anger as he glared at the druids, and said, _"All I'm asking is if it's possible for you to change it enough to do what we want!"_

There was a hesitant pause, before one of the druids said, "It's possible. But it will take us a few days before its ready."

"There's also another change I want you guys to make in it as well," Buffy said from where she now stood in the doorway, Angel behind her.

"And what sort of change would that be, Slayer?" a male druid asked.

"Bind me to Angel as well. Like how Darkmoon is and will be."

In the stunned silence that followed, Darkmoon asked, _"Are you sure?"_

Buffy's expression lost all its humor, as she said firmly, "I've never been more serious in my life."

"Also," Angel said quietly, "this way there is more than one to keep my soul bound."

"Do you understand what this means?" another druid solemnly asked Buffy.

"That I cannot die? That I will remain the age I am forever, as long as Darkmoon, Angel, and I live? Oh, I'm _very_ aware."

"Buffy and I have spent a lot of time talking about this," Angel said. "I came to a realization. If Buffy is mortal, and dies. I would not want to be alive. She is my life. My Beloved. It is for her, that I have become as I am now."

"And I cannot be without him. In this existence...or the next. So we came to a compromise: We would stay together -- alive -- in this one, and stick by each other no matter what."

The druids and familiar gazed at the Slayer and vampire, moved beyond anything they had ever felt. It was a druid who finally said what they were all thinking.

"Then it shall be as you wish."

* * *

Three days later, Buffy leaned back against Angel as he read to her by the fireplace. They were interrupted by a male druid coming into the room, clearing his throat to get their attention.

"My Lord and Lady," the druid said solemnly, "we are ready."

* * *

Within the high school library -- at that very same moment -- the Watchers and Slayerettes were meeting.

"Are you sure, Willow," Giles asked in alarm.

"Yeah," Willow said nervously, "ask Oz even."

As all attention focused on him, Oz nodded, then said, "It's true. I heard the druids talking about binding Buffy, Angel, and that familiar of his to each other."

"Did you happen to hear _when_," asked a Watcher.

"Tonight. In fact," Oz paused, and looked at the clock behind him, "right now"

"We _must_ stop them!" another Watcher exclaimed.

With those words, all the Watchers -- except for Giles -- left the library. The Slayerettes looked at each other, then at Giles.

"Giles," Xander said with concern, "as much as I don't like Deadboy. Not even _I_ would dare get in the way of this. They've been through too much. They _need_ to be together. _I_ can even see that now."

After a moment of silence, Giles nodded, then said, "Agreed."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Willow said quickly. "Let's stop those Watchers!"

* * *

Under a new moon, Buffy, Angel, and Darkmoon stood, the five druids surrounding them. Four druids stood each on a main compass point, with the fifth in the center with the others. Each person in the center stood on a minor compass point, facing inward.

As they were about to begin, shouting could be heard in the distance.

"We may not have time for ceremony," a druid said.

_"Agreed. Take on only the protection. We will do the spell, while you defend us,"_ Darkmoon said grimly.

The male druid who had spoken nodded his understanding, and began.

"Heavens above, Earth below, hear us, and aid our cause.

"I who stand upon North. I who represent Earth, seek your aid. Give me the ability to protect those who we seek to bind together."

A female druid spoke next, saying, "I who stand upon East. I who represent Fire, seek your aid. Give me the ability to protect those who we seek to bind together."

A male druid then said, "I who stand upon South. I who represent Water, seek your aid. Give me the ability to protect those who we seek to bind together."

A female druid called out next, as the voices grew nearer, "I who stand upon West. I who represent Wind, seek your aid. Give me the ability to protect those who we seek to bind together!"

The last druid spoke solemnly, saying, "I who represent the Spirits, seek your aid. Give me the ability to protect those who we seek to bind together."

When all the druids had spoken, a white light surrounded them, as they moved to stand in a circle surrounding those they would protect, facing outwards. As they evenly spaced themselves apart from each other, the light that surrounded them grew brighter...spreading out, until it surrounded them like an impenetrable wall.

_"Right,"_ said Darkmoon. _"Let's get this done."_

At those words, Darkmoon grew, taking on his guardian form. In a growling voice, he said, _"I, Darkmoon, bind myself to my master. I bind myself as his familiar, guardian...and keeper of his soul. I, Darkmoon, bind myself as well, to the Slayer Buffy. May I not die, unless they die. May they not die, unless I die."_

A blue-white light surrounded Darkmoon, Angel, and Buffy, making the vampire and Slayer gasp as the familiar growled. When the light disappeared, Buffy spoke.

"I, Buffy, bind myself to the souled vampire Angel. I bind myself as his lover...and keeper of his soul. I, Buffy, bind myself as well, to the familiar Darkmoon. May I not die, unless they die. May they not die, unless I die."

The light returned, brighter than before, surrounding the three. So great was the power of the light this time, that it brought Angel and Buffy to their hands and knees. A moment later, they stood, as Angel then spoke.

"I who was known as Liam Kells as a human, I who was known as Angelus as a soulless vampire, I who am known as Angel as a vampire with a soul, bind myself to my familiar, guardian, and keeper of my soul. I bind myself to him as his master. I bind myself, also, to the Slayer Buffy. I bind myself to my lover, and keeper of my soul. May I not die, unless they die. May they not die, unless I die."

At the ending of those words, the light returned, blazing white. So great was the light that it outshone the light of the magical wall protecting them. When it disappeared, the vampire, familiar, and Slayer lay on the ground unconscious.


	10. Paladins Acknowledged

**Part 10: Paladin's Acknowledged**

Several days later, Buffy and Angel woke to the sound of Darkmoon saying crossly, _"Will you two get your lazy butts **up**? I have better things to do than keep everyone from bothering you!"_

Angel cracked his eyes open faintly, as Buffy buried her face into the crook of Angel's arm and shoulder, grumbling. With a mischievous smile, Angel grabbed Darkmoon from off of his chest, and threw him out of the room.

Darkmoon's shout of **_"You'll pay for that!"_** followed by a thud, made Angel sigh in satisfaction. Buffy chuckled faintly as she opened her eyes to look at her lover.

With a grin, she said, "I'm beginning to understand why you like doing that, Honey."

Angel nodded, then said with resignation, "We _should_ go out there. We need to prepare for the harpy, and in order for that to happen, the druids have to make us paladins."

Buffy grumbled, then -- when Angel nudged her -- exclaimed, _"Alright!"_

Minutes later, vampire and Slayer stepped out of the bedroom, saw everyone there, and understood why Darkmoon had wanted them to get up. The druids stood by the fireplace, glancing nervously at the Watchers. The Watchers -- except for Giles -- stood by the opposite wall of the fireplace, glaring at the druids. The Slayerettes sat on the couch while Giles stood by it, gazing nervously at everyone but themselves. Darkmoon stood in guardian form by the druids, clearly making sure that the Watchers didn't try anything.

"What's going on here," Angel asked quietly.

Darkmoon changed form to the familiar, walked over to Angel, then leapt onto his master's shoulders, saying, _"Oh, the usual. The Watchers are furious at what Buffy did, and blame the druids. The druids are insisting that what they did was at our request. And the local group and I are trying to keep the others from fighting."_

Angel gazed at Darkmoon out of the corner of his eye, and said, "Huh. What do you say to that Buffy?"

With a gleam in her eye, the Slayer said, "That the Watchers -- except for Giles -- are too full of themselves to look beyond their own goals to realize that what we did is for the better."

A Watcher asked sharply, "How so, Slayer."

Putting an arm around her lover's waist, Buffy replied, "Angel doesn't have to worry about loosing his soul anymore, and I'm immortal. I _can't_ die, no matter _what_ you do to me. The same goes for Angel and Darkmoon. The spell which binds us to each other cannot be broken, unless we _want_ it broken."

"And that will never happen," Angel said quietly and firmly. "Buffy and I made a vow -- not long ago -- that if one of us died, the other would soon follow. If one of us lived beyond the other, that one's grief would be so great, that that one wouldn't _want_ to live if the other wasn't with them."

_"And I would not want to live if my master died before me,"_ Darkmoon added. _"My goal in life is to be my master's familiar and guardian. If he dies before I do, I would have no reason to live."_

"Well said," Giles murmured from where he stood.

"Well," Buffy said brightly, "now that we've talked _this_ subject to death, let's get onto business."

A Watcher asked bitterly, "And what business would _that_ be, Slayer?"

"The _real_ reason why the druids are here: to make me and Angel paladins."

* * *

"Are you _sure_ that this is how this is supposed to be done," Buffy asked nervously.

"Yes," said a female druid in a soothing voice. "First you must be acknowledged by the higher powers. After that, you will receive the weapons of your rank. Then -- if all goes well -- you will receive your mounts."

"Why do we have to do this _tonight_? Why not tomorrow!" Buffy complained.

"Because this night is the night of your birth," said another druid. "You have expressed the wish to be wedded to the souled vampire on this, your eighteenth birthday. We will do so before the ceremony to make you both paladins."

Buffy's eyes grew huge, as she whispered, "You're really going to marry us together?" At the druids' nods of acknowledgement, the Slayer then asked, "Does Angel know this?"

"Yes. It is he who requested that we do so."

Tears fell down her face, as Buffy threw her arms around the druid sitting nearest her.

In a broken voice, she whispered repeatedly, "Thank you."

* * *

The sun had set, and all was ready, when Angel and Buffy stepped outside. A druid solemnly gestured for the vampire and Slayer to come closer. Their hands linked together, they did so.

Addressing everyone, and no one, the druid said, "Here before me stand two who wish to be acknowledged as paladins. One, a vampire in possession of his soul, accepts the call of Dark Paladin. The other, a Slayer, accepts the call of Light Paladin." After a pause, the man continued, saying loudly, "Hear me, great heavens! I call upon you to recognize these two warriors, and give them the rank of paladin."

After a moment of silence, thunder rumbled overhead in a clear sky.

**_"What gives them the right to be paladins,"_** a voice with no source thundered.

Buffy released Angel's hand, and stepped back, as Angel said firmly, "I have aided the Slayer in her calling. I have endured the torments of Hell for over seven hundred years, for the sake of the world."

**_"Acknowledged,"_** the sourceless voice said, _**"your reasons are accepted."**_

With a nod, Angel stepped back, as Buffy stepped forward, saying, "I have fought against the forces of darkness for four years. I have died and come back, because of my calling as a Slayer. I have had to send my lover to hell, for the sake of the world."

Silence, then, **_"We hear and accept."_**

A glow surrounded the two warriors, as weapons appeared beside them.

**_"Accept these weapons, and know that we are pleased,"_** the sourceless voice said, then continued, _**"Accept, also, the mounts you are given. They have awaited your calling for nearly three hundred years."**_

With those words, the thunder in the sky stopped, as a light brighter than the sun appeared. Within that light a neigh was heard. As the light disappeared, a pure white horse with wings hovered.

In silence, the pegasus floated down to earth, to land in front of Buffy. The Slayer gasped as the creature bowed to her, then nuzzled her.

As this happened, a dark shadow appeared in the ground. From the shadow, a neigh was heard. Moments later, a horse black as night, with flaming mane and tail, leapt out. Snorting, the creature skittishly moved towards a stunned Angel. Upon reaching the vampire, the night-stallion bowed.

In a hoarse whisper, Angel said, "It was _you_ who helped me out of Hell."


	11. Powers Awakened

**Part 11: Powers Awakened**

Angel took the offered drink into his shaking hand, then downed it in one swallow. After coughing as the brandy burned down his throat, the vampire said roughly, "I thought that that horse was only a dream in my hallucinations of Hell after my return."

"Apparently not," Giles murmured as he refilled Angel's glass.

In the silence that followed, the entrance door to the mansion opened, as Willow came inside.

In an excited -- but subdued -- voice, she said, "The druids are almost done taking care of the paladin's mounts."

At those words, Angel shuddered, and once again downed the refilled glass. With a frown of displeasure, Buffy stopped the vampire from getting another refill.

"That's enough, Honey," the Slayer said firmly. "I have no intention of you being drunk not even one day into our marriage."

With the reminder of what had been done that night, Angel looked down at his and Buffy's right hands. He saw the Claddagh rings glinting in the firelight, and smiled faintly as he brought his wife's hand to his lips and kissed it.

"Forever," he whispered.

"Forever," Buffy agreed firmly.

"As upsetting as breaking this moment is," Xander said in a tone of voice that was clearly the opposite of what he was saying, "we've got business to take care of. When we leave, you guys can do whatever you want."

Angel glared, while Buffy rolled her eyes. With a sigh, the Slayer muttered, "What is there left to discuss?"

"Your training," said Giles quietly, "and how to destroy the harpy."

Buffy frowned, a look of concentration on her face, before she said and asked, "The harpy I can understand...but training?"

In an almost patronizing tone, a Watcher said, "Well _Slayer_, with you needing to patrol every night, your _insistence_ on keeping a normal life as much as possible, and the souled vampire unable to go out into the sun...your time to train together is _very_ limited."

Buffy and Angel looked at each other. After a moment, Angel slowly nodded once. They then stood and went over to one of the covered windows in the mansion. Once there, the vampire stood a few feet in front of the window, while the Slayer went to stand by the black-out curtain.

As Darkmoon watched the two, he suddenly realized what they were about to do, and exclaimed in alarm, _"**Oh no you don't!** You're **not** telling them!"_

Buffy scowled as she put a hand on the curtain covering the window, her other hand resting on her hip. In a voice showing her annoyance, she said, "Why not? You've made it so that it can't come off as long as he has his soul. And if somehow he _does_ loose it, he'll go 'poof' with it on...like any other vamp."

As Darkmoon growled -- dangerously close to taking on the guardian form --, Willow asked uncertainly, "What are you guys talking about?"

Buffy focused on Willow, and asked mildly, "The sun's up, right Willow?"

As Willow slowly said "Yeah." Buffy swiftly pulled the curtain off of the window, daylight flooding the room. Angel stood within the sunlight, his eyes closed, a look of bliss upon his face. Buffy went over to him, and touched his arm. He turned, bent down, and kissed her.

Into the stunned silence, a Watcher shouted, _"My GOD!"_

* * *

Angel sat outside in the sun, Buffy beside him, as the Watchers _and_ druids argued with his familiar within the mansion.

"You know," Angel commented while putting on a pair of wrap-around shades that he had bought after his first day in the sun, "they should really come outside. It's a beautiful day."

"Mm-hm," was the only response from the Slayer as she lazily traced patterns on Angel's bare chest. Buffy then glanced up, a grin on her face as she said, "Although, it _is_ funny that the only time the Watchers and druids have agreed about anything is about that ring. You'd think we'd found Excalibur, then tossed it into an active volcano."

With a faint chuckle, Angel murmured, "If only they knew that that was the sword the higher powers gave me."

"Well, you _are_ his descendant."

"True." Angel sighed as he glanced towards the mansion, then said, "They're not going to be done anytime soon. Why don't we get acquainted with our chosen steeds?"

* * *

Within the woods near the mansion, Angel and Buffy stood gazing at the pegasus and night-stallion.

"It's hard to believe that they're ours," Buffy finally managed to say past her wonder.

Angel nodded his agreement as he watched the two creatures play together. Darker than night, and brighter than day, pegasus and night-stallion mock-battled. A few moments later, as if sensing their riders, they stopped, and looked over at the vampire and Slayer.

As one, pegasus and night-stallion bowed. Buffy's breath caught as her eyes grew wider in awe. In a hushed tone, she asked, "Why are they doing that, Angel?"

"They recognize the crown-prince -- and unofficial king -- Liam Kells-Pendragon. He who is last of the Pendragon's to exist," a voice said softly behind Buffy and Angel.

Swiftly, vampire and Slayer turned around, and saw a peculiar sight. An elderly man in well-worn jeans, a tattered green t-shirt, and hiking boots that had seen better days holding an ancient wooden carved staff stood, gazing at the two lovers with gentle gray eyes. He bowed to them. When he stood, he said -- still in that soft voice--, "Greetings, my Lord and Lady, I am Mavric, descendant of the wizard Merlin, and I'm to teach you both how to use those magnificent steeds behind you, as well as how to use your new powers."

"What powers would that be?" Buffy asked in confusion.

Mavric looked deeply within Buffy's eyes, and said in a powerful voice that echoed, "The powers that you have possessed since you were first called as Light Paladin, Maeve Summers."

Buffy's eyes glazed, as a shimmering blue light surrounded her. Angel started to reach out to her, but stopped when he felt a force that he had only felt in Hell surround him. Drawing in a shuddering breath, Angel strained against the bonds that made it impossible for him to move. He did not notice the red glow surrounding him, casting a dark and sinister shadow upon half his face.

Minutes passed, as both were caught in the re-awakening of their powers. It was Angel who first broke free with a cry of triumph...as the red light around him exploded. Rage in his eyes, the vampire crouched before Mavric, growling. Seconds later, Buffy gasped, staggered, and fell to her knees, trembling, the blue light surrounding her gone.

Slowly, Angel stood, his gaze never leaving Mavric's. A red light that might as well have been fire surrounded the vampire's hands, as he snarled, the very depths of Hell shining within his eyes, _"You will pay for that, wizard!"_

Staggering back, Mavric placed his staff before him in a fighting stance, his eyes wide, as he whispered in shock, "You shouldn't be that powerful!"

By this time, Buffy was now standing, and -- seemingly out of nowhere -- a flaming white sword was in her hand. With the power of the Slayer and the White Paladin's spirits' rage within her eyes, Buffy growled out, _"How dare you!"_

A shudder shook Mavric's frame as he whispered to himself, "That's not possible! How can they be so powerful!"

The wizard then watched wearily as the pegasus and night-stallion came to stand beside their respective rider. Never taking their eyes off of Mavric, Buffy and Angel mounted their steeds. A moment later, Darkmoon stood behind the wizard, and caught the wizard's collar in his mouth, and dragged him back towards the mansion.

Once outside of the woods, Darkmoon released Mavric. Shuddering, he moved further away from the familiar and paladins, as Angel and Buffy each raised their right hands in unison. Neither said a word as light -- red and blue -- shot out from their hands, and struck him. No time did he even have to cry out in fear, before landing harshly against a mansion wall, unconscious.

Instantly, those within the mansion came running out, to witness a sight they had never seen.

Slayer and vampire sat upon their mounts -- they and their mounts garbed for war --, as Darkmoon crouched in guardian form in front of them.

In a trembling whisper that all could hear in the sudden silence, a druid said, "There is no need for them to train. They are ready now."


	12. The Beacons

**Part 12: The Beacons**

The next morning, as Angel walked Buffy to the high school, the Slayer murmured, "I'm glad Giles was able to work everything out with Mom. Now I can live with you as your wife."

"Yes, and I'm going to have to deal with Snyder. I'm not enjoying the thought of that, especially after everything I've been told about him from the others," Angel said.

Buffy laughed, then said as they reached the high school, "Come one, Honey, we need to see Giles about last night's patrol. After that, I'll take you to Snyder's office."

Neither noticed, as they walked towards the entrance of the high school, that everyone they passed by were stopping what they were doing to look at Buffy and Angel in envy.

In a hushed whisper, a girl asked as the newlyweds passed, "Where did _she_ get _him_!"

Another beside the girl answered, also in a hushed whisper, "She's been seeing him for awhile on and off. Almost since she first came here. I guess they finally decided to make it official that they're together."

* * *

Buffy waved to Angel before disappearing into the crowd going to classes. With a sigh, Angel turned around and entered the main office. A woman looked up, startled.

She gazed at him stunned for a moment, before saying in a rush, "May I help you?"

"Yes," said Angel quietly, "I'm here to see Principal Snyder about a last name and address change for my wife."

After a long pause -- in which Angel was sure the woman was going to faint --, the secretary asked, "And whom would your..._wife_ be known as, sir?"

"Buffy Anne Summers," came the simple reply.

The woman gasped, before whispering faintly, "Oh my!" She stood abruptly, and said, "If you will wait here sir, I'll go inform the principal."

With a faint smile of amusement, and a lifted eyebrow, Angel watched as the secretary knocked on the principal's door. After a snapped "Come in!", the woman walked into the office. Even though they talked in low voices, Angel could hear them.

"What is it, Miss Johnson?"

"There is a man in the outer office that claims to be Miss Summers' husband, sir. He also said he wishes to change Miss Summers' last name, and the address of where she is now living."

"_What!_ Get him in here right now!"

Moments later, Angel sat before Principal Snyder, and had to agree with what everyone had said: he looked like a troll. But he knew that wasn't true, because the man smelled human...regrettably.

Snyder leaned forward on his desk, his eyes narrowed in shrewd contemplation. Minutes passed, before he said, "So. I hear that you have married Miss Summers, Mister...?"

"Kells. Angel Liam Kells."

"Mr. Kells then," Snyder said bluntly. "Do you realize that the one you have claimed to have married is underage, Mr. Kells?"

Angel leaned forward in his chair, his face void of all emotion, as he said, "She is not. She is eighteen as of two days ago. I married her the night of her eighteenth birthday..._after_ she was said age even on her birth certificate."

"Do you have proof of this marriage, Mr. Kells?" Snyder sneered.

Quietly, calmly, Angel pulled out a paper in the folder his was carrying, and handed it to the principal. He said, as Snyder studied it, "I have many more copies of this document, sir. This copy is for Buffy's records of the legality of her last name and where she is now living being changed."

Snyder looked up, and asked, "She is living with you then?"

"Yes," Angel said, very much wanting to roll his eyes in disbelief. "She is my _wife_, sir. Of course she is living with me."

"Does her mother know of this?"

"Yes."

Snyder then asked skeptically, "And she accepts it?"

"Yes."

"You have proof?"

Angel pulled out several papers, and handed them to Snyder, as he said, "This -- and the other papers -- are signed and witnessed by people who are close to my wife and I agreeing that we did get married, and that it was done after her eighteenth birthday...of her own free will."

Thirty minutes passed, as Snyder read through -- then re-read -- all the papers. With a muttered curse, Snyder stacked the papers neatly, then pulled out Buffy's school file. He then said, after placing the papers into the file, "The changes will be done then." He then looked up at Angel. "Is there anything else you need?"

Angel took out a small piece of paper, then handed it to Snyder. He then leaned back in his chair, folded his arms, and said with a faint smile, "Yes, there is, in fact. I would like a pass that allows me free entrance into this school during school hours, to contact the people on that sheet when necessary. This pass would also allow me to take them out of a class at any time...for any reason. This also means that _they_ can leave their classes at any giving time for any reason."

Fury blazed in Snyder's eyes. He stood up suddenly, and snarled, "You think you can get away with that, _Mr. Kells_! I think _not_!"

Calmly, Angel rose slowly to his feet, leaned forward on Snyder's desk, and locked eyes with the principal. He was satisfied to see uncertainty appear in the man's eyes. In a voice devoid of all emotion, Angel said, "I _can_ get away with this. Would you like to know why?" He allowed his eyes to become yellow from the demon within him. "I have contacts in places you or whomever you work for would fear to tread." His eyes changed from yellow to a fiery red with the power of Hell behind them. "You are nothing compared to me."

His eyes returned to normal, as he released Snyder from his gaze. In a much friendlier tone of voice, Angel then said as he straightened up, "And if I ever hear that you are causing problems for any who are on that list -- and any I might add after this day --, you will truly learn what fear is."

* * *

As Buffy was getting ready to leave her last class of the day before lunch, she sensed a presence uniquely Angel's, and grinned. Murmurs of startlement made Buffy look towards the door as the bell rang. Angel leaned against the doorframe, his eyes only on her. He grinned, as the Slayer ran over to him.

"You did it," Buffy asked breathlessly a moment later, practically bouncing in excitement, as Angel moved to allow the other students to pass by.

"Yeah," he said, as his grin turned into a smirk. He took a laminated card out of a pocket in the leather jacket he was wearing, and gave it to Buffy. "Got one for everyone. Giles sent notes -- and the cards -- to everyone else in the group. Also got a promise from Principal Snyder that anyone else we add to the list is to get one as well."

"Cool!" Buffy took Angel's arm, and steered him out into the crowded hallway, before saying, "Let go to the cafeteria, I'm starving!"

Angel chuckled, before he said, "I was actually hoping that we might go out to my car. I packed a lunch to celebrate. The others should already be out there waiting for us."

A slow smile took over Buffy's face, as she said, "I'll take your cooking over the cafeteria's any day. Let's go!"

* * *

"Well, now that we don't have to worry about Snyder butting his nose where he shouldn't, how are we going to use these free school passes," asked Buffy from where she leaned against a tree. She then said, explaining further, "You know, how will we know when to use them?"

"Good question," Oz commented from where he sat softly playing his guitar.

"Yeah," said Xander as he scarfed down the last of the sandwiches, "with the old system when we got a pass, we knew we had to go to the library. How will know when to go now?"

"Most of the time," Angel said idly from where he lay on the ground gazing at the sky, "I'll come and get you."

"And when you can't, Angel," Willow asked as she packed up the picnic basket.

"Angel need not go to get you," said Giles, "as that may take more time than we may have."

"Then," Buffy said, her expression confused, "how will you contact us?"

_"Easy,"_ said Darkmoon from his perch in the tree behind Buffy. _"Giles, the Watchers, the druids, and I created some devices that you all can wear that will let you know we need to meet. I don't know about the others, but I'm calling them Beacons. Why don't you show them, Giles?"_

Giles nodded as he pointed to what looked like a watch on his wrist, and said, "You all received these with your free passes, all except for Angel and Buffy who shall receive their's later. What these are are what you might call a...'homing device' for where you need to go I suppose." Giles paused in thought, then said slowly, "I suppose 'Beacon' is as good a term as any for them. Anyway -- as Buffy would put it -- on the place where you would normally tell time, is blank. When you need to go to a certain place, the blank face will then show a picture. The picture will tell you where you need to go, as well as a feeling that you need to go to that place immediately."

_"As an added precaution,"_ said Darkmoon, _"they **do** tell the time. In fact, no matter **where** you are, those devices will tell you the time of that place. You will also be able to get the time of a place where you **want** to know the time of."_

"What would those pictures be," asked Angel curiously, ignoring what his familiar had said.

_"A book for the library. A stake for the mansion. A teacup for Giles' home. A headstone for the cemetery. And a guitar for the Bronze,"_ said Darkmoon as he leapt out of the tree, and onto Buffy's lap.

"Sounds good," said Buffy. "But why don't Angel and I have one yet?"

_"Yours needed a little extra treatment,"_ Darkmoon said, then explained, _"You both needed a way to call your steeds to you, so we did that."_

"You know," said Willow suddenly, "that posses a _really_ good question. How are we supposed to activate, shutdown, or whatever these things?"

"It's simple, really," said Giles as he stood. "All you need do is look at it, and think what you wish it to do. A precaution though," he said, as everyone but Buffy and Angel looked at there "Beacon," "the device can sense when the use is an emergency or not. So do not think you can get away with using it in non-emergency situations."

All but Giles, Angel, and Darkmoon groaned.


	13. The Fates

**Part 13: The Fates**

**_Swords clashing in the night.  
Shouts of encouragement.  
Unnatural light casting shadows upon the fighters.  
Pegasus and night-stallion fighting to defeat each other.  
Blood drawn.  
Battle ended._**

"Well done," spoke Mavric from where he had watched with the others.

Buffy and Angel went over to the others as their mounts went into the forest. Grinning in exhausted triumph, Buffy asked, "How long did that match go?"

Angel looked at his "watch", and said, "Roughly five hours, Love. And at this rate -- when we finally face the harpy -- we'll be able to go for several days at a time without rest."

Buffy frowned at that, before saying, "Speaking of which: we still haven't been told how to defeat the harpy."

"Another group that is coming will tell you that, Slayer," said a druid.

The Slayer scowled as she said in annoyance, "You know, at this rate, we're going to need to rent a _stadium_ so that everyone that wants to watch us battle the harpy _can_ watch!"

"The group that is coming is not large," explained another druid, "but are only three women that are called the Fates."

"Why's that," asked Willow curiously.

"As with the Fates of Greek legend," said a female druid, "these three can see the past, present, and future."

Mavric then said, "The Fates of this time are sisters. Triplets, in fact. Together, they are the most powerful group of seers to exist since the fall of the Greek Gods."

"And what of Merlin, Mavric," asked a Watcher.

The wizard turned his gaze to Buffy and Angel, and quietly said, "Yes, he did posses power, but it was not for the sight. No matter what others thought. But his power doesn't even compare to the power that these two paladins weld."

"What do you mean?" asked another.

"Their spirits have lived lifetimes. One in just one body. The other in many. Though they did not know it, they sought each other out constantly. Through all that time, they learned and grew in power, until they once again found each other. In this lifetime, they have been rejoined, and through hardships unbearable...they have stayed together, and bound themselves to each other forever."

* * *

A week had passed without anything out of the ordinary happening -- for Sunnydale that is --, when they received the first use of the Beacons as other than timepieces.

Buffy ran out of the school, looking at her "watch" to make sure she was going to the right place, and muttered, "_Why_ the Bronze? Nothing ever happens there during the day!"

The sun was steadily rising in the sky when Buffy reached the dance club, and spotted Angel and Giles. She also saw a lot of yellow police tape and cars flashing their red and blue lights as well.

Slipping into the crowd, Buffy went over to the vampire and Watcher, and asked, "What happened?"

"Seems the harpy's at it again," Angel said grimly.

Buffy closed her eyes, then asked bluntly, "Details?"

Angel reached out and gathered the Slayer into his arms, as Giles said quietly, so that those around them could not hear, "There were three of them. Two males, and one female. They were found by the owner of the Bronze about half an hour ago, when he was locking up."

Buffy nodded, accepting the comforting presence of her husband, then pushed away, her expression determined. She gazed at Giles, and asked, "When will the Fates get here?"

"They are coming today," Giles said. "That is another reason why I called for you."

"So that we can meet them before everyone else?" Buffy guessed.

Giles nodded his agreement, as Angel asked, "When will they arrive?"

"In about an hour."

* * *

"Flight 666 arriving at Gate 9," the airport announcer's voice echoed hollowly.

Buffy rolled her eyes, as Angel muttered, "Hell...and the ninth-level of Hell." He then said bitterly, "As if I _need_ any more reminders of that place!"

"Hey," Buffy said quietly as she took Angel's hand in hers. "Don't go there, Honey. Remember: if you go there, _I'll_ go there. Since _I'm_ the one who put you in that place."

As Buffy and Angel stared intently within each other's eyes, Giles looked heavenward, sighed, then said in exasperation, "Will both of you _quit_ that! We're going to be late!"

* * *

"Look," said Buffy, pointing as they reached Gate 9, "that's _gotta_ be them."

Three females with flaming-red hair and emerald-green eyes came out of the gate. They looked all the same, even their clothes which consisted of a dark green shirt, blue jeans, and white tennis shoes.

With raised eyebrows, Angel murmured, "Aren't they a little..._young_?"

"Fifteen at the most," Giles said in agreement, 'though clearly not surprised.

"Hey!" Buffy said in protest. "That's how old I was when I became _Slayer_, so don't go dissing them 'til you know 'em!"

By this time, the three sisters had spotted Buffy, Angel, and Giles, and had started to walk over to them. When they reached the paladins and Watcher, one of the Fates said in a soft lilting voice, "Greetings, I am Dawn, the eldest sister of the Fates, and seer of the past. I take it that you are the ones that have come to take us where we need to go?"

Giles nodded, then said, "Yes, we are. My name is Giles. The ones with me are Buffy and Angel. They--"

"Are the reason we are here," interrupted another Fate. "I greet you, my Lord and Lady. I am Cora, the middle sister, and seer of the present."

"And I," said the last Fate, "am Eve, youngest sister, and seer of the future."

Cora nodded, then said calmly, "So you might know -- and not think ill of our youth -- we are fourteen years old. We began our training almost from our birth, and willingly take up the task given to us on our birth by the heavens."

"You aren't bitter?" Buffy asked curiously.

"No," said Dawn gently, her expression sad as she gazed at the Slayer. "We knew of our duty from our birth, and understood the burden we would carry."

Buffy looked down and away from the three Fates, her lips thinning in bitter memories. A hand gently placed under her chin lifted up her face. Slowly she raised her eyes to gaze into Angel's.

She saw tenderness and understanding there, as the vampire whispered, "Don't go there. No regrets, remember?"

Buffy nodded, then sighed as she looked back at the Fates. With a half-hearted grin, she said, "Sorry about that. My husband and I have a tendency to forget that there are others around us at times."

Eve inclined her head, before saying, "You have both had to endure hardships that should not have been possible to bear to reach the point where you are now. It is understandable."

"And on that note," said Giles quietly, yet firmly, "I suggest we take our leave of this place, and go to the high school. It has been arranged that I and Angel will be your guardians while you three are here. Those arrangements include that you go to the high school as well."

_"Great,"_ Angel muttered. "That means another visit to Principal Snyder."


	14. The Mayor

**Part 14: The Mayor**

"This is a very interesting school," said Dawn. "But surely living on the Hellmouth would make it so that we are not so interesting to see?"

"Yes," said Giles as he stacked books on the check-out counter in the high school library, "you would think so. But that is not the case." Giles glanced at the souled vampire as he carried said books into the stacks, and asked then exclaimed, "Angel, would you care to explain? And _please_ keep your feet on the ground...it's bad enough that the children do it!"

Angel looked up from the book he was reading, his feet crossed and resting on the table in front of him. The vampire glared at Giles' back, and muttered what suspiciously sounded like "Brits" before placing his feet on the ground. He looked over at the three Fates, then said, "What Giles is getting at is that this town has what we've termed as selective memory to the extreme...or simply put: denial. They'll only remember what they want to, and will make-up some -- however unbelievable it is -- excuse about what they can't forget."

"Gangs on PCP, for instance," said Buffy sitting beside Angel. "That's the most common excuse used for whatever happens around here."

"Aren't the police in the least bit suspicious?" asked Eve.

Buffy burst out laughing, as Angel said dryly, "We suspect that the police are in with the demons, but we haven't been able to find proof yet...one way or the other."

_"Oh, they're in with the demons alright,"_ said Darkmoon dryly as he slipped into the library. _"The Mayor's planning on becoming one."_

Buffy stopped laughing as suddenly as she had started. Giles could be heard to drop several books within the stacks. And Angel asked darkly, "What do you mean, Familiar?"

_"I just heard from Mother, and what she told me isn't good."_ Darkmoon looked at Angel, then said seriously, _"You better get everyone in here."_

* * *

"What type of demon again?" asked Angel as he paced around the library like a caged lion.

_"A pure-blood true Hell-demon."_

"What's the big," asked Buffy flippantly. "It's a demon. We slay it."

Angel stopped pacing, and slowly turned to face Buffy, his expression strained, as he said, "Beloved, the demons you've faced are _not_ true demons. They aren't pure-bloods. A pure-blood doesn't have _any_ human likeness in them." He shut his eyes and shuddered, before whispering hoarsely, "I should know. It was true-bloods who tortured me in Hell."

"Good Lord," whispered Giles in shock. "Only those they deem worthy of note, do they pay attention to."

Concern in her eyes as she gazed at Angel, Buffy said softly, "And one who used to be the most ruthless vampire to ever exist turned vampire with a soul aiding and falling in love with his enemy would definitely be worthy of their attention."

Giles looked deep in thought, before he said slowly, "Angel." When the vampire turned to gaze at him, the Watcher asked, "I know this is difficult, but _how long_ were you in Hell again?"

Silence, then, "Seven hundred fifty-five years."

"And the age you are now?"

"Two hundred forty-five."

Giles studied Angel, then said, "One thousand years -- the longest any vampire has ever lived --, yet you do not posses a permanent demon face. Why?"

"I don't know," answered Angel quietly.

_"It is because of your soul, Master,"_ said Darkmoon in explanation.

As everyone looked at him in confusion, the familiar explained further, saying, _"In order for the demon face to become permanent, the demon needs to be in complete control. With Angel, the soul is in control, not the demon."_

"Thus, the demon cannot show its true face as Angel ages," Giles murmured.

"I've got a question," said Xander suddenly from where he sat with the others. "How is this related to the Mayor turning into a demon?"

Giles -- his eyes still on Angel -- said, "The amount of time Angel spent in Hell would have allowed him to come into contact with most of the demons of Hell. With this knowledge, we may be able to figure out what kind of demon the Mayor will become...and how to destroy it, before he destroys us."

"Graduation is like three weeks away," said Willow thoughtfully as she idly held Oz's hand, "so if we can figure out before then and prepare...we'll probably win."

Angel went and stood behind Buffy, and said with conviction, as he put his hands on her shoulders, "There's no 'probably' about it Willow. Even if we can't find how to kill it, my and Buffy's power and abilities will be so great by that time that it wont matter."

"Don't become over-confident, Sire," said one of the three Fates softly. "That has led to the downfall of many a Warrior."

Buffy reach up, and placed one hand over Angel's, as she said, "Listen to her, Honey. 'Cause that's what happened when I faced the Master."

Angel was silent for a moment, then nodded his head with understanding.

* * *

"I'm really worried, Angel," said Buffy as she and Angel patrolled through Sunnydale that night. "That harpy...and now _this_! Will we ever get a brake?"

"Well," Angel said, "I don't know about the long-run, but we can take one right now. Remember, we promised to take the Fates sisters to the Bronze?"

A grin replaced the scowl upon Buffy's face, as she said, "Come on! I could use a visit to the Bronze myself."

* * *

"Honey," Buffy said into Angel's ear, "please tell me I'm imagining it...but is that _Spike_?"

Angel followed Buffy's gaze, and nodded. He watched as the one of his bloodline fell to the ground holding a beer bottle.

"He's drunk, too," Angel commented.

"Let's go find out why he's here," the Slayer said.

It took them only moments to reach the drunken vampire, and when they did, they pulled him off of the woman he was either trying to bite...or hit on. Not even Angel was sure which it was.

Slipping out the back exit, Buffy and Angel then slammed Spike against a wall, as the souled vampire growled, "What are you doing here, Spike?"

Spike squinted -- obviously trying to focus his eyes --, before saying in a slurred voice, "Tha' you Sire? Though' the git wa' goin' to s-stake ya las' ti' I saw you."

Buffy barely restrained Angel from smashing his fist into Spike's face. In a voice that shook with suppressed rage, Buffy then said, "Answer Angel's question Spike!"

Struggling in their grasp, Spike growled, "Let me go, an I'll tell ya."

In a moment, Spike lay flat on his back, staring up at the souled vampire and Slayer leaning over him. Gazing directly into Angel's eyes, Spike said in a very clear and mournful voice, "She _left_ me."

At Angel's look of disbelief, Spike grew angry. Sitting up, he said adamantly, "I took her to Spain, and she left me...for a _Chaos demon_!"

Buffy burst out laughing, as Angel looked sick. He said, "That is the most..." Angel shook his head, and gazed at Spike with a look that clearly showed he felt sorry for the other vampire. "What made her leave you?"

Spike looked down at the ground, and muttered in a low voice that only Angel heard, "Somethin' abou' me not bein' man enough for 'er."

Angel rubbed his face as he sighed, then said in defeat, "Why do I always end up with the misfits of the vampire world in my bloodline?"


	15. Spike

**Part 15: Spike**

**_BOOM!_**

Everyone stopped what they were doing, to gaze stunned at the open doorway of the mansion. They watched as Spike staggered inside, closely followed by Buffy and Angel. The three Fates trailed behind uncertainly, and quickly went to stand by the druids.

"Just _once_," Buffy exclaimed, as Angel dragged Spike over to the fireplace and chained him there, "I would like to have _one week_...Hell! one _day_ where something supernatural _wasn't_ happening!"

In the uneasy silence that fell, Giles asked quietly, "What happen? And why is Spike here?"

Glaring at Angel, Buffy grumbled, "My _husband_ wouldn't stake him...and wouldn't let me do it either!"

In exasperation, Angel turned around and said, "I told you Beloved, I can't allow you to do it. I've already broken two of the rules the vampiric world lives by. If I break a third...they'll send the Taraka Order after me. The only reason they haven't done it before now is because of who I was before I received my soul!"

"You've broken two?" said Spike curiously. "I thought it was just the one: aiding your enemy. Which even _I've_ done, and is the most forgivable of all the rules. Considering everyone breaks it at _least_ once or twice."

"He doesn't know about you killing Darla?" Buffy asked as she looked at Angel.

Spike's eyes grew huge, as he stared at Angel in horror, and stammered out, "You killed Darla? You killed your _SIRE_!"

Without looking behind him, Angel smashed his elbow into Spike's face. The soulless vampire slumped to the ground unconscious.

In a very quiet voice, Angel said to the Slayer, "No one knew about Darla, Buffy. Everyone thought that _you_ killed her."

* * *

"WHAT ELSE HAVE YOU DONE THAT OTHERS HAVE TAKEN BLAME FOR ANGEL!" Buffy shouted.

Willow clung to Oz, shivering, as she asked Giles in a small voice, "Make them stop. Please?"

"BESIDES YOU? _NONE!_" Angel drew in a deep shuddering breath, then said in a lower tone of voice that throbbed with the rage he felt -- his _and_ the demon's --, "That was one of the reasons I was so feared before my soul. Never _once_ did I break one of the rules set by the vampire world. Not even my _grandsire_ could give claim to that!"

"And who's your grandsire, huh?" Buffy snapped back. "Who is he or she that makes you say that!"

In the silence that fell, Spike said quietly, "The Master."

In a split-second, Buffy's face went from red with anger, to white as a sheet in shock. A shudder coursed through her frame, as Angel reached out to the Slayer in concern.

"Beloved?"

In a weak attempt at humor, Buffy said, "Is it like a rule or something that all of your bloodline have to come to the Hellmouth at least once?"

With an uneasy chuckle, Angel said, "As far as I know, all but Penn have made an appearance."

Buffy then said, a hint of irony in her voice, "Should I even ask?"

Angel leaned forward, and caught his wife's lips with his own. In a soft whisper, as Buffy leaned comfortably against the souled vampire, he then said, "No, Love. You shouldn't."

"Are you guys done being mad at each other?" Willow asked in a strained voice.

Buffy looked up into Angel's eyes, and whispered, "Yeah, Will, we are."

"Good. Now can you answer Giles' question about Spike being here?"

Buffy burst into a fit of giggles -- which she muffled in Angel's shirt--, as Angel said in a dry voice, "Seems Dru dumped him for a Chaos demon, and for _some_ reason decided to come here."

"Felt me sire 'ere, and decided to go to 'im and complain," Spike muttered, looking everywhere but at Angel.

Dropping his face into Buffy's hair, Angel said in a muffled voice, "I should've staked him while I had the chance."

* * *

With a groan, Angel fell into bed not long after sunrise. Moments later, Buffy came into the room yawning, Darkmoon following.

_"All we need do now is wait,"_ said Darkmoon as Buffy crawled into bed beside her nearly asleep husband. _"The Mayor will Ascend in roughly three weeks, and the harpy will show up two weeks after that."_

"But what are we going to do with Spike?" Buffy asked as she yawned again.

In a quiet sleep-filled voice, Angel said, "Leave that to me."

* * *

Angel gazed down at Spike, his face expressionless. He then turned to gaze around the room, to see what was happening. He watched as the curtains keeping the sun out were removed. Not one speck of sunlight touched where Spike and Angel were.

Once all he had asked everyone to do was done, they left. Even Buffy left, with a last glance at her husband, before shutting the door. Returning his gaze to Spike, Angel -- not to gently -- nudged the vampire, and said commandingly, "Get up, Spike."

After a few minutes' prodding, Spike woke up, and sat up suddenly when he saw the sunlight filling the room.

"What the 'Ell!" he exclaimed.

Instantly, Spike found himself on his feet in a vice-like grip, gazing terrified into his sire's rage-filled eyes. "_Never_ say that word around me," Angel hissed.

The souled vampire released Spike, his eyes returning to their emotionless state, as he said flatly, "Welcome to _your_ version of Hell, childe of my bloodline."

"How so, sire?" Spike asked, his voice spiteful. "_My_ version of that place was when you took Dru from me."

A small cruel smile traced Angel's lips, as his eyes seemed to become red with Hell's fire.

"You experienced then was just the Hell of the mind." If possible, Angel's expression became even crueler. "What you are going to experience now is the Hell of the body...as only one who has survived the torments of Hell _can_ show you."

* * *

"No! NO! Please sire! _I beg you!_" Spike cried out as he cowered away from Angel.

"Why should I?" Angel hissed. "This is _nothing_ compared to what I went through!"

"No more," Spike whispered, shuddering. "Please, I can't take much more."

Angel studied Spike, then nodded once, curtly. "Very well," Angel said as he stood. "Oh, and Spike?"

Spike looked up wearily at his sire, as Angel said, "Next time you come around any I have claimed, you will find yourself dust. And another thing," Angel stepped backwards into the sunlight, and whispered, "I cannot die."

* * *

Three hours after sunset, Angel strolled into the high school library. Within seconds, Buffy flew into his arms, and held him in a tight grip.

"It worked?" she asked breathlessly.

Angel pulled Buffy back slightly to look into her anxious-filled eyes, and said softly, "It worked. He won't ever be coming back here again."

"Good." Buffy said firmly, then pulled the souled vampire over to the table where everyone was sitting. "We've had a breakthrough on what type of demon the Mayor's going to turn into."

* * *

"We can destroy him by either using a spell...or by blowing him up." Angel looked up from the drawing of the demon he was studying. "I would like to avoid destroying the school as much as possible."

Giles nodded in relief, then asked, "What type of spell would be needed?"

"One that only paladins can use," Angel said as he looked at Buffy.

"Then what are we going to be needed for," asked Xander in annoyance.

Buffy broke away from Angel's gaze, and turned to look at everyone else, saying, "We'll need you guys to distract any reinforcements that he'll probably use to keep everyone together...while _we_ handle the Mayor directly."


	16. The Prom

**Author's Note:** Forgive me, I got sentimental, and _had_ to write this.

**Part 16: The Prom**

Less than two weeks to Graduation, the prom was scheduled, and in a fit of denial unlike anything ever seen, those preparing to face the Mayor when he Ascended -- and going to school at the same time -- prepared for the prom instead.

"Why won't you show me the dress you got me, Angel!" Buffy exclaimed two days before the prom. "I need to know how to style my hair, and what type of make-up to use!"

With a mysterious smile, Angel glanced up at Buffy from the drawing he was doing, and said, "Don't worry, Beloved. I have everything planned."

_"Ohhhh!"_ Buffy exclaimed, throwing up her hands in disgust. "You're impossible!"

* * *

"He _still_ won't tell you?" Willow asked in disbelief as she and Buffy sat side-by-side in their first class of the day. "The prom's tomorrow!"

"Yeah," the Slayer said, dejection in her voice. "I know, and I'm about ready to stake him for it too."

Tilting her head to the side, Willow said in contemplation, "That won't do anything but ruin one of those expensive black silk shirts he likes wearing so much."

Sliding further down in her chair, Buffy said glumly, "I know."

* * *

"How was your day, Beloved," Angel asked as Buffy walked into the mansion at the end of the day.

"Awful," Buffy muttered. She then gazed accusingly at Angel and said, "And it's all your fault!"

Angel put down the book he was reading, and asked curiously, "How so, Love?"

Buffy threw down her backpack, and stalked over to her husband, and said as she placed her hands on her hips, "All day I had to listen to everyone talk about what they were wearing to the prom. Do you have any idea how depressed you can get when they ask you what you're going to wear, and all you can say is _'I don't know'!_"

With a trace of a smile, Angel said, "You will tomorrow after lunch."

Immediately, Buffy's anger fled. With wide eyes, she asked breathlessly, "Really?"

Angel nodded, and said, "Mm-hm. Tomorrow at lunch I'll come by and pick you up. Just make sure you're at the front of the school. You need not lift a finger. I'll be doing everything, since this is technically our first real date -- if you think about it --, and I want to treat you like the queen you are, my love."

If possible, the Slayer's eyes grew even larger, as she asked in a faint voice, "Queen?"

Angel reached out and gently pulled Buffy onto his lap. In a soothing whisper, he said, "Since I am the last of the Pendragons existing...I am king -- even though I am not recognized as such except among the druids --. And since I am a king, you are a queen, my beloved wife."

* * *

_"Queen!"_ Willow squeaked in shock. "I'm in the presence of actual royalty!"

A grin permanently set on her face, and nearly jumping in her seat in excitement, Buffy said, "Yeah. I can't believe it, but I talked with the druids and Fates this morning...and they say it's true!" Her expression turning sly, she then added, "It explains why Angel seems to not worry about money whenever I bring up the subject."

"And you still don't know about your dress?" Willow asked.

Buffy nodded, then said as she calmed down, "Yeah, but I'll know after lunch today. Although -- with what Angel hinted at last night about royalty and all -- it's going to be _very_ impressive."

* * *

At lunch Buffy, Willow, and Oz were on the steps of the high school, when a stretch limo pulled up. They -- and everyone else -- watched as a man they recognized as one of the druids opened one of the back doors. Buffy and Willow gasped in unison as Angel stepped out of the limo.

He wore his traditional boots, _tight_ black leather pants, and a dark purple, velvet, long-sleeved, loosely fitted shirt. Many women looked near fainting as Angel passed them on his way to Buffy.

Upon reaching his wife, Angel reached out and took Buffy's right hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed it. Looking up at his wife through his eyelashes, he whispered in a soft and velvety voice, "Shall we go and prepare you for the dance, your Majesty?"

Willow swayed beside the Slayer -- only to be held by her boyfriend in a tight grip to keep her from fainting --, as Buffy said quietly, "As you wish, my Lord."

Taking the hand Angel held, he then turned, and placed said hand in the crook of his left arm. Heads held high, Slayer and souled vampire walked down the sidewalk as though they were walking towards their thrones. Upon reaching the limo, Angel aided his wife inside, then stepped inside himself.

As the limo pulled away from the high school, everyone turned to where Willow and Oz stood.

In a voice faint with wonder, Willow said, "She's married to royalty."

* * *

Once out of the limo, and inside the mansion, Buffy received her first view of the dress she would be wearing...and nearly fainted in shock.

"Do you like it," Angel asked in concern as he held onto his wife.

"Like it!" Buffy said breathlessly. "Honey, it's _amazing_!"

On a full-sized mannequin in their bedroom, Buffy gazed wide-eyed at the dress in sheer awe. The skirt was full-length, and was made of blue satin with a section of purple down the center, forming a triangle. The upper body of the dress was made of a forest green satin, and was low-cut. Across this -- going from left to right -- was a royal purple sash Gold clasps at the shoulders of the dress held a floor-length blood-red cloak.

"Where did you get this, Angel?" Buffy whispered faintly.

Angel went and stood beside the mannequin. As he gazed at the dress, he whispered, "I had it specially created for you. But you could say it came from my mother. When I was a boy, my mother would often say she dreamt of me dancing with a woman of amazing beauty -- one worthy of our line -- and that she wore this dress."

Angel turned around to look at Buffy, gazed deeply within her emerald-green eyes, and said, "From the moment I first saw you, I _knew_ you were the one she dreamt of."

* * *

The prom was in full-swing, when Buffy and Angel arrived. The moment the two entered the room, the music from the live band stopped, as everyone turned to gaze at them. They were a striking couple with Buffy's dress and Angel in a black tuxedo with a red silk shirt, and a purple sash tied at his waist that went to the knee.

But that was not what caused everyone to whisper and point at them. What made the crowd do so was what they wore on their heads. Both Buffy and Angel wore a simple gold-band that went completely around their heads, with a ruby in its center.

Angel looked up from Buffy, as if noticing the sudden silence for the first time, and caught the eye of the lead singer of the band. He inclined his head slightly. In response, the lead singer nodded, turned to the band, and whispered, "_My Heart Will Go On_...and make it good."

As the first notes started playing, Angel guided Buffy towards the center of the dance floor. The crowd moved back to give them the room they needed. As the first words began, they danced.

_Every night in my dreams  
I see you, I feel you_

Buffy tightened her grip around Angel as she remembered how her lover had been within her dreams the entire time he had been in Hell. It made her realize how lucky she was that he was with her now.

_Love can touch us one time  
And last for a lifetime  
And never let go till we're gone  
Love was when I loved you  
One true time I hold to  
In my life we'll always go on_

Angel buried his face in Buffy's hair, as he realized how lucky he was to have the woman within his arms.

_There is some love that will not go away_

Both Slayer and vampire shivered at those words. Never had anything so true ever been said.

_You're here, there's nothing I fear,  
And I know that my heart will go on  
We'll stay forever this way  
You are safe in my heart  
And my heart will go on and on_

The royal couple drew away from each other -- but not completely --, as the last notes of the song ended. Neither noticed the sudden wild applause around them, as they were too lost within each other and their memories.


	17. Graduation

**Part 17: Graduation**

The morning after the prom found everyone at the mansion, in various states of after-prom funks -- all of the unconscious kind.

Mid-morning Angel and Buffy stepped out of their bedroom, and gazed at the mess their home had become.

With disgust and horror, Angel stated, "I am _not_ cleaning this mess up!"

"Agreed," Buffy said, her expression slightly ill with disbelief. "Why don't you start breakfast, and I'll get everyone awake..._somehow_."

By noon, all were awake, and the mansion spotless...when the Beacons activated.

* * *

"What's the emergency, Giles," Buffy asked as she walked into the library, Angel and the others following.

Silently, the Slayer's Watcher held up a copy of the local newspaper. The headline read: _SLASHER KILLS TEN ON PROM NIGHT_.

"The harpy," Angel stated, his voice flat.

_"She grows restless,"_ Darkmoon said from where he sat on the check-out counter, _"and hungry."_

"Hungry?" Willow asked, and shivered. "Why don't I like the sound of that?"

_"Because of how and **what** the harpy feeds on,"_ Darkmoon said grimly. _"This particular harpy isn't just a harpy...but a half-breed. Half harpy...and half siren."_

Angel shuddered, and whispered, "_That's_ why I was so drawn to her!"

_"Indeed. The harpy draws in her victims by luring them in with her song, then attacks...and devours their souls."_

_"WHAT!"_

Everyone gazed stunned at Angel, as said vampire shook with fear, the echo of his shout just starting to fade. With tenderness, Buffy reached out to her husband, and drew him into her embrace.

Into the silence, Darkmoon said, _"You will want to hunt down the harpy. I will give you this advice: Don't. She will not be found unless she **wants** to be found. All we can do is wait._

"How _can_ we wait, Darkmoon," Buffy asked anxiously. "People are _dying _out there!"

Angel moved away from Buffy, and leaned heavily against a table. He said in a ragged and harsh voice, "_Damn_ that harpy!" He then turned a determined face to Darkmoon. "I will not see innocents destroyed because of her!"

* * *

"That's _suicide_, Angel!" Buffy cried out in panic. "I will not see you destroyed!"

"What better options do we _have_," Angel said in frustration. "I'm the only one capable of withstanding the pain from the damage she will cause in order to do what needs to be done!"

With tears in her eyes, Buffy whispered, "I can't stand to see you hurt again, Angel."

_"And you won't,"_ said Darkmoon quietly. _"Master, you cannot do what you suggest. It is too dangerous. Not just to you...but to me and your wife. Remember: our souls are connected to yours. If one of our souls is harmed, then so are the others'."_

"The Familiar speaks truth, Lord Kells," said a druid quietly.

Angel looked at the ground, his posture like one who has the burden of the world upon him.

"Alright," he whispered, weary defeat in his voice. _"Alright."_

* * *

"According to what we've been able to find out," Giles said as he stood at the head of one of the library tables, "There will be a solar eclipse just before the Mayor turns into a demon. This means that any vampires working for him will be able to attack."

"That's where all you guys come in," Buffy said from where she sat. "While Angel and I deal with the Mayor, we're going to need you to make sure that we wont be distracted."

"And how are we supposed to do that," asked Xander. "We'll be in the middle of graduation!"

Buffy rolled her eyes as she said in exasperation, "Once the Mayor Ascends there won't be!"

* * *

Buffy looked ill as she whispered to Willow, "_Please_, tell me that he's not giving the whole speech!"

"Looks like it," Willow said grimly in reply.

"That's _beyond_ evil!" Buffy hissed through gritted teeth.

Just then, the solar eclipse started, causing pandemonium, as the Mayor began to change. As planned, the Scooby Gang began herding everyone away from the demonic Mayor.

_"Come on people,"_ Xander shouted, then winced and shuddered as he saw Snyder being eaten. "Follow us and get away from the huge snake trying to eat you!"

"There might be a slight problem with that, Xander!" Willow shouted as she pointed to the line of vampires blocking the way out of the auditorium.

"Buffy's counting on us," Oz said as he ran up beside them. "We'll have to force our way through."

"Maybe not," said Xander suddenly calm, as a war cry in the Gaelic tongue pierced the air.

The line of vampires suddenly shifted, as screams of pain and agony were suddenly heard, followed by the pounding of hooves. As the Scooby Gang watched, an arrow of light from Buffy's direction suddenly flew from behind them, and landed in a brilliant flash of light in front of the vampires, causing many to disappear into a massive cloud of dust. Through that same cloud Angel came into view, riding the night-stallion, Excalibur in hand.

In a deadpan voice, Xander said, "Calvary's here."

As Angel reached and passed by the three Scooby Gang members, he shouted, "What are you doing just standing there! _Get these people out of here!_"

"Right," Willow said to the others. "You heard him. Let's get to work!"

As Willow, Xander, and Oz ran towards the remaining vampires keeping them from escaping, Angel rode towards Buffy as she mounted her steed, the bow she had used moments before slung across her back. With a quick nod to Angel, Buffy guided the pegasus into the air.

The two paladins reached the demonic Mayor within a moment. As one, Buffy and Angel attacked. With a cry in his native tongue of Gaelic, Angel struck the demon from below, as Buffy let fly an arrow of light from her bow.

The true demon roared in pain, as the paladins began to chant. Flames as black as the sky surrounded the demon. Screams and howls of agony and pain could be heard within the black flames.

"...Go back to that place from whence you came, Hell-demon, and be forbidden access to this world ever again!" Angel and Buffy shouted in conclusion, their chant done.

The flames rose higher into the air, completely consuming the demonic Mayor, as his roar went from pain to rage. The ground began to shake heavily as the flames started shrinking slowly.

Minutes passed, before the flames became a swirling vortex. Buffy -- gazing down from directly above the portal to Hell -- saw as the demon fell, seemingly forever. When she could no longer see the demon, the portal closed. In its place, a perfectly round circle could be seen...of charred grass.


	18. The Fates' Revelation

**Part 18: The Fates' Revelation**

Once again, Angel surveyed his home, and muttered to Buffy, "You want me to wake them up this time...or cook?"

Buffy gazed at their houseguests, then said with a malicious gleam in her eyes, "Let Darkmoon wake them up, and _we'll_ cook together."

* * *

A panther's roar broke the still morning air, as all within the mansion -- but those who lived there permanently -- started awake suddenly.

_"Rise and shine everybody!"_ Buffy called out from the entrance of the kitchen cheerfully. "Breakfast will be done in half an hour... I'd _suggest_ you get this place clean before then!"

_"Coffee is on the dinning room table for all who want it,"_ said Darkmoon as he took on his Familiar form again, his job done.

As people were slowly getting up, Angel shouted from the kitchen, "If this place isn't cleaned up by the time breakfast's ready...you aren't getting any!"

Stillness settled over the group, then everyone exploded into action, either getting a cup of coffee or starting to clean the disaster zone that was the mansion...which had the Slayer laughing hysterically at the sight.

* * *

"Why is it that every time we have a party, it has to be at _my_ place?" Angel muttered, as he surveyed everyone eating breakfast.

_"Perhaps because yours is the only place they can safely party at, without drawing attention to **why** they're partying. You also have the biggest home of all the others,"_ Darkmoon said matter-of-factly.

Angel glowered, as he slouched further down in his chair, and said, "I would just like to have the place to myself and Buffy, for once."

The familiar jumped up onto his master's lap, and said as he sat down, _"You just want a romantic night with your wife, huh?"_

"With _no_ interruptions...whatsoever!" Angel said in agreement.

Just then, Buffy and Angel's Beacons went off, which caused Angel to growl in frustration.

* * *

"So what's the emergency, _this time_, Giles?" Buffy asked in annoyance, Angel uneasily following her into Giles' home.

"The Fates are ready to give you the knowledge of how to defeat the Harpy," Giles said calmly, as he polished his glasses.

It was only then that Buffy and Angel noticed the Fates sitting on Giles' couch.

"Hi!" Buffy said, startled. "Didn't notice you there."

Inclining her head in acknowledgement, Dawn, the Fate of the Past, said as she stood, "It is understandable, my Lady. Until we wish it so, our presences are never known."

"Such is our way," spoke Eve as she too stood.

Nodding, Buffy asked as she crossed her arms and leaned back into Angel, "So...how are we going to do this?"

Cora nodded her understanding, and replied, "We shall go into a trance-state, then you may ask what you need to know."

"When can we do this?" asked Angel softly.

"Now," said Cora as she stood in-between her two sisters, and took their hands in hers, all closing their eyes at once..

The moment there hands touched, the three Fates began to glow faintly green, then blue. They opened their eyes.

**_"I am the Fate of the Future. Ask of me what you will, Lord and Lady,"_** spoke Eve in a haunting and ageless voice, her eyes blacker than night.

**_"I am the Fate of the Present. Ask of me what you will, Paladins,"_** said Cora with the voice of a child, her eyes as silver as the stars.

**_"I am the Fate of the Past. Ask of me what you will, Warriors,"_** spoke Dawn in the voice of an old and wise woman, her eyes whiter than the full moon.

Giles, Angel, and Buffy gazed at the three Fates in awe. After a moment, Giles stepped forward.

"Why did the Harpy come to this plane?"

The light within the Fate of the Past's eyes intensified, before she and her sisters spoke in unison -- their voices eerily filling the room and making it echo --, saying, **_"The Harpy was brought to this realm by a dark sorceress. The sorceress sought to destroy the last of the Pendragons completely... But her plan failed."_**

"How so," asked the Watcher.

**_"She herself was of the Pendragon line. She was the first killed by the Harpy."_**

"Why did she seek to destroy my mother's bloodline?" Angel asked, his voice low and intense.

**_"She sought to seek revenge for the wrongdoings of the Pendragon's king's sister...for 'forcing' her to conceive his only child."_**

"No," Angel whispered as he shook his head, "it was the other way around. He didn't even know who she was when she took him to her bed. Only _afterwards_ did he learn who she was. He did not even know she had conceived until she brought their son to him many years later."

**_"Words,"_** said the Fates, **_"spoken by one of this line never rang so true."_**

"If the goal of the Harpy was to destroy the Pendragon line -- which has happened --, why hasn't she left?" Buffy asked curiously.

**_"Because one still remains,"_** spoke the Fate of the Present -- her eyes seeming to take on the appearance of rolling storm clouds --, as she looked towards Angel. **_"As long as he continues to exist, she will hunt for him."_**

**_"Only through her destruction will the threat to his life be no more,"_** spoke the Fate of the Future, her eyes seemingly luminous...even though they remained dark.

"Which brings us to our next question: _how_ do we destroy the Harpy?" Buffy asked quietly.

The Fates began to float off of the ground, as their voices filled the room like thunder.

**_"Dark and Light must join, forever bound.  
The Familiar must join with his Master and become the Guardian.  
The Bloodline must be acknowledged.  
Three powers join and become one.  
Three souls bound forever more.  
Mounts and Riders reunited.  
The Sword returned to its Master's line.  
Souls ravaged.  
Powers lost.  
By Will and Love alone, shall the Harpy be no more."_**

As one, the three Fates fell to the ground unconscious.


	19. Challenge Accepted

**Part 19: Challenge Accepted**

"I _really_ hate riddles," said Buffy as she looked at a piece of paper in disgust. "Why couldn't they have just told us?"

"Actually, this _is_ pretty plain-spoken for Oracles," Angel said then pointed at the first line written on the paper. "_'Dark and Light must join, forever bound.'_ This is us, as paladins...and as vampire and Slayer."

"And this one about a Familiar has to be about you and Darkmoon, Angel." Buffy said, realization in her eyes.

"But _'The Bloodline must be acknowledged.'_ I don't understand," Angel murmured, confusion evident in his tone.

_"That's easy,"_ said Darkmoon from where he was sprawled out on the sunlit table in the mansion. _"That's talking about the Pendragon's line."_ Off of his master's confused look, he explained further. _"No Pendragon has been acknowledged since their massacre -- which Angelus and the Harpy caused --."_ Angel winced at the reminder _"Sorry. Anyway, due to this, only just now have the Pendragons been recognized again... And since you are the only Pendragon left Master, you are the one they must recognize."_

Angel nodded, frowning. He understood it, but did not like it. Looking down at the paper again, he said, "The next two are obviously about us three joining together because of the spell we did."

"And the one about 'Mounts and Riders reunited' have to be about us getting our paladin's mounts," said Buffy.

"_'The Sword returned to its Master's line'_ has to be me getting Excalibur from the Powers That Be," Angel said, his hand going to rest on the hilt of the sword laying sheathed on the left side of his hip.

"_'Souls ravaged'_ I don't like," Buffy said as she chewed on her bottom lip.

"Just as much as I don't like the _'Powers lost'_, Love," Angel said quietly as he gazed at his familiar, a dark look in his eye.

"If only we knew what it meant!" Buffy exclaimed in frustration, as she slapped the table.

Darkmoon slowly rose from his sprawled form, walked over to the two paladins, and sat in front of the paper they were studying. He placed one paw on the page, then said, _"Mother recently spoke to me concerning the Harpy. What she told me was a warning: **'Let not the Harpy's voice lure you in.'** She knew more, but was forbidden to speak it by the higher powers."_

"Then," said Angel quietly and grimly, "the only clue we have to defeat this creature is this last line: _'By Will and Love alone, shall the Harpy be no more.'_"

_"Correct."_

* * *

A month passed in frantic preparation for Angel and Buffy to face the Harpy. Within that month they honed their fighting abilities to such heights as to make _all_ the Underworld fear them...and the forces of Light revere them. Not one demon would willingly set foot onto the Hellmouth either, for Spike's tale of Angel's invincibility had spread like wildfire. As such, Sunnydale had an all-time new record of low death rates.

"Angel, honey..."

"Yes," Angel asked tiredly from where he lay sprawled out on their bed as Buffy got dressed for her first day of college.

As she brushed her hair, she asked casually, "Can we spend the next two weeks until the Harpy comes not thinking or doing anything about her...please? I'm so tired of training, and thinking of what she might do when we fight her!"

Angel sighed as he sat up, reclining on his elbows. His voice soft and gentle, he said, "You know we can't do that, Beloved. _But_ we _can_ take the _night_ off."

The Slayer stopped mid-brushstroke, and turned around to gaze wide-eyed at her husband, "Really!"

With a slow smile, Angel nodded.

* * *

Two more weeks passed in absolute peace... Then came the siren call.

The moon shone fully down upon the two mounted Paladins and Familiar-Guardian. All who had added them -- but the werewolf -- stood behind them at a safe distance.

On raven black wings she came, her voice haunting yet terrifying in its power. Alighting not far from the paladins, the harpy took on its human form, and tilted her head to the side...her eyes colorless.

"We meet again...Pendragon," she whispered, her voice a velvety whisper in the breeze.

Angel swallowed back his fear, then said -- his voice filled with sudden rage --, "Yes. We do."

The harpy studied him, then said as her gaze sharpened as it swiftly focused on the Slayer by his side, "So. You have mated, Pendragon." She once again looked at Angel, her voice hardening as she said, "It matters not. All shall be obliterated tonight, and I shall be free!"

With a sudden fierceness, a wind surrounded the harpy as she transformed into her natural form, and took flight.

_"Do you accept my challenge Paladins!"_ she cried, her voice shrill in the night air.

In answer, Buffy raised her bow, and shot an arrow of pure light at the harpy.

With effortless ease, the harpy dodged the arrow...and with a scream, dived towards the Light Paladin.

The battle was on, as Angel raised his hand blazing red with the flames of Hell, and shot a ray of light at the destroyer of his line. The harpy screamed as she was forced back away from those she wished to kill.

Face twisted with fury, the harpy began to sing. Not a song of joy, but a song of death.

Instantly, all but the Paladins and Guardian cried out in pain as they tried to cover their ears to not hear the agonizing song. Within moments, all affected by the half-siren's power were unconscious.

With a roar, Darkmoon leaped into the air -- his wings unfurling --, and lunged at the harpy. Instantly, an airborne dance of death began, as each fought for a death-strike. In seconds, Harpy and Familiar shrieked in pain. The harpy moved higher into the air as Darkmoon fell to the ground with a thud -- his right wing at an unnatural angle in several places --.

As the harpy gloated, Buffy -- her sword of light blazing -- and her mount rose into the air. Just as they reached their destination, the harpy dove down and under the pegasus. Easily evading deadly hooves, she reached up, and ripped the underside of the winged horse's stomach. With an agonizing scream, the pegasus fell, Buffy falling with her.

The ground shuddered with the impact, as Buffy cried out...her lower body pinned beneath her mount. The harpy laughed in malicious glee.

In sudden fury, Angel kneed the night-stallion he rode roughly -- causing the creature to rear and trumpet out loud --, and shouted, "_Harpy!_ I am the one you want, take me if you can!"

The harpy sneered as she said darkly, "As you _wish_ Pendragon!"

Instantly, rider and mount rushed forward as the harpy dove towards them. In a moment of time that seemed to almost stop, Angel struck with Excalibur. At the same time, the harpy reached out with her talons, and struck the night-stallion across the neck...ripping open the jugular. The stallion staggered, then began to collapse as the Dark Paladin was forced from his seat by the harpy.

Time sped up once again as Darkmoon -- almost completely healed -- leaped towards the two. As Angel and harpy crashed to the ground the harpy thrust her taloned hand into Angel's stomach.

Darkmoon roared out in torment as he convulsed in mid-air, then collapsed mere feet from his master and the harpy...just as Buffy screamed and fell unconscious.

In the sudden stillness that followed, Angel gazed down at his stomach in shock -- a choked sound escaping him --, then looked up into the harpy's eyes. He felt cold at the triumph he saw in them.

"I have won!" whispered the harpy in human form, as a silvery-black light surrounded her.

With a strangled gasping cry, Angel felt as all of his power was drained from him...and through him his beloved's and familiar's powers as well. He felt himself becoming weaker by the second, as their combined power was drawn into the harpy, healing and feeding her...and destroying them.

He closed his eyes as he felt all hope of winning leave him.

_Forgive me, Beloved_, was all he thought as darkness began to cloud his mind.

* * *

Those who had been made unconscious by the Harpy stirred awake at the twin cries of agony, and looked on in horror at the destruction before them. But as they watched, the moonlight surrounding the Harpy and Dark Paladin seemed to intensify...casting a gentle glow upon Angel and Angel alone, unnoticed by the harpy.

* * *

At the moment the darkness was about to completely consume him, Angel felt a presence touch him, and from some unknown source, a haunting female voice whispered within his mind, **_"Souls ravaged... Powers lost... By _Will and Love alone_, will the Harpy be no more."_**

Confusion filled him, then understanding.

* * *

With a suddenness that shocked all who watched, Angel's eyes snapped open as he grabbed the arm of the taloned hand within his stomach. With a primordial scream, he slowly pulled the harpy's hand out of him, as a flaming red light surrounded him. The light slowly moved up to Angel's hands, as the Dark Paladin kept a fierce grip on the harpy. The light was terrifying to watch as it seemed to constantly shift and move just like flames up Angel's body.

* * *

Angel grimly held on as the harpy struggled to free herself from his grasp, but he would not allow it. Locking eyes with the harpy, Angel hissed out through gritted teeth, "You chose the wrong Pendragon to mess with, Harpy."

The Harpy froze as the flames surrounding Angel's hands suddenly grew...then rush towards her. It was only then that he released her.

Writhing in pain, the harpy took flight with a shriek, then stopped suddenly as her back arched...the flames becoming blue as Buffy suddenly shouted, "DIE Harpy!"

The flames then became purple as Angel called out, "Return our life and powers, creature, and be no more!"

Writhing in the air, the harpy slowly began to disintegrate. As this happened, a silver light -- just like flames -- left her and went to the two Paladins, Familiar and Mounts. Within seconds, the harpy was nothing but dust in the wind.


	20. Farewells

**Part 20: Farewells**

It was three days before those who had fought the harpy were in any condition to be moving around...and even then it was just barely. In truth, the _only_ reason they were up and out of their bed was the fact that everyone who had helped them was leaving.

"My Lord and Lady, you really _should_ have stayed home," said one of the druids in consternation.

Buffy snorted, then said from where she sat in one of the waiting chairs, "As if we'd miss you guys leaving."

Angel nodded his agreement from where he sat next to his wife, Darkmoon on his lap.

"We will not say a word more, Sire," said Eve, "But only if you promise us that you will immediately return to your bed once we are gone."

"That was what we planned to do anyway," murmured the souled vampire.

_"Good,"_ said another druid.

Just then, the airport announcer called out over the loudspeaker, "Flight 1726 at Gate 1 now boarding."

Angel groaned as his head fell into his hands. Buffy patted his back -- fighting off a grin -- as he said darkly, "I wish they'd quit _doing that_!"

Shaking her head, the Slayer looked at the druids and Fates, and said, "You guys better go."

Nodding, the druids and Fate sisters left. Sighing, Buffy turned her head to look at the Watchers.

"Thank you for your help," she said.

The lead Watcher shook his head, before saying, "We should be giving you our apologies, not accepting your thanks, Slayer."

"You are who you are," Buffy commented with an indifferent shrug. "As long as we don't but heads too often, we'll get along fine."

"Indeed," the Watcher said. "We would not dream of interfering in a Paladin's business."

"I should hope not!"

"Flight 1898 at Gate 3 now boarding," the airport announcer said dully, as Angel rolled his eyes.

"You need to go," Giles reminded his fellow Watchers. "Is that not your flight number?"

"Yes, it is," confirmed the lead Watcher, before turning to gaze at those with him. "Ladies, gentlemen, let us be off, then."

All of the Sunnydale group waved - though, some half-heartedly - as the Watchers left.

* * *

Time passed in blessed peace and quiet within Sunnydale, all falling into a relaxed and easy pattern in their lives. Willow and Oz were engaged, planning to formalize their bond upon the spring equinox. Xander was still dating Cordelia, and had gotten a stable job with a construction company. Giles was still librarian at the high school - to better keep an eye on the Hellmouth -, and was being considered the next in line to take over the Watchers - much to his disbelief -. Buffy, Angel, and Darkmoon had mostly kept to themselves, all needing time to fully recover from the battle with the Harpy.

The three never said anything, but the others had felt since that battle that something fundamental to who they were had changed. It was nothing big, but the small things that made it noticeable. A glance at some comment, a gesture, or just the way one of them would look when they thought no one was watching. All this led to one conclusion in their minds: the Paladins and Guardian were restless and looking for something to do in the suddenly peaceful town of Sunnydale.

* * *

Spring had come and gone, allowing Fall in all its wondrous glory to be seen when the Beacons were once again used. Within the hour, all had assembled at Angel and Buffy's home, wondering what the emergency was. They did not have long to wait, as the said couple and their ever-present shadow came ridding out of the woods near the mansion.

The two paladins stopped a few feet from the group, Buffy dismounting and heading towards them. Her expression was sorrowful, yet filled with excited anticipation as she said quickly, "I don't have much time to talk, but we felt it would be a good idea to let you all know what is going on." Drawing in a deep breath, Buffy continued in a serious tone, "We've been called by the higher powers to help in another dimension, especially since everything's so calm here now."

"That will leave the Hellmouth unprotected, Buffy," Giles said quietly as he took off his glasses and fiddled with them.

The Light Paladin shook her head before saying, "That's being taken care of. Another Slayer's being called as we speak."

"How long will you be gone," Willow asked softly as she gripped her husband's hand tightly.

Looking sadly at her best friend, Buffy replied in the same tone, "I don't know. This is kinda going to be a permanent thing with us, 'cause of who and what we are, you know." She looked at her friends, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "We'll come and see you all as often as we can, guys. We just don't know how long it will be between visits."

"As long as we get to see you...even Deadboy, again," Xander said, his voice cracking with emotion on the last word.

Her face and eyes showing the wealth of emotion she was feeling, Buffy held out her arms to the gang. All of them - even Oz and Giles - joined in a group hug that lasted for a solid minute. It was Angel calling Buffy's name that finally pulled them apart. With a last heartfelt glance of farewell, the Slayer turned around, headed back to Angel and Darkmoon, and quickly leapt onto her stead's back.

At that moment, the wind suddenly picked up, and a swirling white and black vortex appeared thirty feet away from the Paladins. The couple gazed at each other - their expressions filled with sudden anticipation -, and grinned. With a Gaelic war cry, Angel spurred his mount towards and through the portal, Darkmoon following at his side. Buffy quickly followed behind, laughter trailing after her.

THE END


End file.
